Shock and Awe
by DeathProofHero
Summary: Set after Things Change. Slade returns, and this time with a new apprentice, and a truly sinister plot. And when he puts both into action, not all will come out the other side unscathed. BBxRae, RobxStar. RATING CHANGED TO M FOR FUTURE EVENTS IN THE STORY LINE. **AS OF 8/21/12 THIS STORY IS OFFICIALLY OFF IT'S HIATUS. LOOK FOR NEW CHAPTERS IN THE WEEKS TO COME.**
1. Blood for Their Troubles

**(A/N) Hey there Teen Titan fans!. This is the first chapter of my very first story, Shock and Awe, which has now been beta read! Chapters 2, 3 & 4 are also completely finished, with the 5th on the way, and 6 already in the works.  
**

** If anyone should appear out of character , it's not on purpose, I'm trying to stay as true to the characters as possible. This is more of an intro chapter, it does serve the plot of course, but the story really heats up in the next chapters. So before you cast this aside completely after reading just this chapter, I do believe it gets better. Though that could be writers bias speaking...;)**

** Critiques are always welcomed and appreciated. So drop a review if you've got the time, otherwise, enjoy!  
**

**DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own the Teen Titan's or anything/anyone else who might appear in this story, including any characters pertaining to the Batman side of the DCAU...ah ah, no hints...  
**

**Writing Style is as follows:**

**'_Thoughts'_**

"Dialog"

Everything else

**

* * *

  
**

**Chapter One: Blood for Their Troubles**

The tower's common room doors hissed open, revealing the five beleaguered and weary teen heroes as they meandered into the room, heads hung and arms lax at their sides from sleep deprivation. Raven was the first to reach the couch in the center of the large room; she fell backwards into it, letting her pale legs hang over the armrest. Starfire went to the dining room table and took a seat as Robin and Cyborg made it into the kitchen, leaving Beast Boy leaning against the common room's door frame. Starfire rested her head on the table, using her arms as a pillow as Robin took a seat next to her, coffee cup in hand, the smell of the fresh brew wafting through the whole room. Cyborg had opened the fridge and began to rummage for a late night snack.

The Titans had started their day a tad early, being woken by the tower's 'trouble alarm' at 3:00am, causing a general foul mood to spread through the team. The alarm was for one of three bank robberies they would have to deal with that day, along with two burning buildings, three minor wannabe villains and several cats stuck in trees. All in all, they had been called out the entire day and now at a little past midnight they had finally been able to return to their home, a little worse for wear.

Cyborg finally broke the silence that had overtaken the room, startling Beast Boy from his near comatose state.

"Y'all want anything to eat? I could whip somethin' up real quick." He looked around the room at his shabby looking teammates waiting for their answer.

"Nah, man," Beast Boy said as he put his hand against the door frame to keep himself from falling. "I'm gonna head to bed before I pass out. G'night guys." He received a goodnight from Cyborg and three groans from the others as he made his way out through the door and into the hall that would lead him to his room.

Cyborg glanced over at Robin who was nursing his coffee and the now snoring alien girl by his side. Deciding they were pretty much good, he picked a pan from a compartment under the stove and looked over to the couch, only able to see the empath's pale legs hanging over the armrest as the back of the couch hid the rest of her body from view.

"How 'bout you Rae, want me to make ya anything?" he asked the young sorceress as he started making his own meal.

"Tea," Was Ravens only verbal reply, she lifted her hand into the air and pointed at the cupboard which held her herbal teas.

"Sure," the metal man said as he started her tea kettle on the stove. "You can head to your room if ya want, I'll bring your tea when it's done," he offered his groggy friend.

"That's okay" Raven said as she swung her legs off the armrest of the couch and sat up. "I'll just read a little until it's done. Thanks though." Cyborg gave her a nod as she picked up the book she had left on the coffee table in front of the large couch and continued where she had left off.

Robin pushed his chair back and stood.

"I'm gonna get her to bed," he said as he gently picked the sleeping alien girl up from her seat and held her in his arms. Cyborg smirked.

"Uh huh, I bet you will," He said with a laugh as Robin walked past the kitchen, the Boy Wonder blushed slightly while shooting his metallic teammate a glare.

Then through clenched teeth corrected his previous statement, "HER bed…" Robin made his way through the door and into the hall, Cyborg calling after him still laughing.

"Whatever you say man!"

* * *

A few minutes before, Beast Boy had made it to his door after a quick pit stop to the bathroom. He typed in his door's access code and slowly entered his dark and VERY cluttered room. He barely made it into his room as the door quickly closed and a hand shot out from the darkness behind him, going around his head and covering his mouth. A shocked Beast Boy let out a muffled yell against the offending hand and before he could change into anything or even face his attacker, he felt a blinding and indescribable pain cascade through his body. First on his right side near his hip and then across his lower back, causing him to close his eyes and throw his head back in anguish, the attacker's hand still firmly planted over his mouth smothered his pained screams.

A figure spun around to face the changeling, pushing him back against the door roughly and causing even more pain to the green hero. Beast Boy slid down the door, his back leaving a gruesome blood trail as he finally sat on the ground, legs splayed out in front of him as he tried to catch his breath. He gingerly moved a hand to his aching side, electric pain shot through his body as his fingers made contact.

He pulled his hand away and brought it in front of his face, shock consumed him as he saw his hand completely covered in blood. His eyes went wide as he realized what his assailant had done; he'd been stabbed. As the smell of his own blood started overwhelming his senses, he began to try and yell for help, but the pain was so intense only a small squeak escaped his lips.

Hearing this, the figure knelt down in front of the frantic teen and put an index finger up to his faceplate before he spoke in an all too familiar voice that made the changeling's ragged breath catch in his throat.

"Shh now, Beast Boy, no use wasting what energy you have left if you want to have a chance at survival." The maniacal voice said with a chuckle.

The figure reached a hand up and removed its face plate, revealing a small video screen that appeared to be black, but soon a face came into view. The masked man chuckled again as a wide eyed Beast Boy mouthed his name, a mixture of horror and anger painted across his face.

"That is, if your friends can find you in time without encountering any…accidents of their own along the way. Your outcome is looking a little grim, I must say," Slade continued, smirking under his mask at the agony he knew the changeling was experiencing. "I bet you can't even change forms through all that pain, let alone move. Your throat must be closing up a bit or else I'm sure you would have yelled for help by now."

Beast Boy closed his eyes as he clenched his teeth, trying to think of a way out of this, but his mind wasn't clear.

His thoughts were frantic and scattered, the pain keeping him from moving or even speaking. He felt an ever growing dampness creeping across the floor beneath him. The smell of his blood grew stronger as his wounds emptied his body of the precious fluid, his already tired body becoming weaker by the second. '_**Damn it!**' _Beast Boy screamed to himself, '_**why couldn't the common room be closer?!** **They'll never hear any of this**…' _Slade let out another laugh, which Beast Boy was quickly growing tired of.

"What do you want with me?" Beast Boy asked in a horse voice as he glared at the small screen, which was growing exceedingly difficult. His vision blurred terribly, causing the monitor to fade in and out nauseatingly, much like the rest of his room.

Slade smirked under his mask as he replied, "Amusing you would think this pertains only to you. No my green friend, your misfortune is only part of a much larger message. And trust me, you are only the first of many to come." Beast Boy only glared venomously at the screen, either not able to say anything or simply not wanting to.

"Well, I'm afraid I must cut our little reunion short, Beast Boy. So much to do and so little time to do it in. Taking over an entire city and destroying its precious team of heroes can be terribly trying on ones well being." Slade's robot seemed to leer as it moved a little closer to Beast Boy's face, Slade's one eye narrowed as he finished his train of thought. "I do hope you can recover. The pain I have planned for your future will be far worse. And that is a _very_ pleasing thought…."

With that said the screen went black once more as the Sladebot replaced its mask, stood and ran towards Beast Boy's open window, leaping out into the darkness outside Titans Tower.

Beast Boy watched the Sladebot escape, leaving him alone in the now abysmally suffocating space he called a room. The night's cold air filled the room, numbing him as his body shook from the shock. He still sat leaning against his door, a sizeable pool of blood now formed around him, leaving him too weak to get up or even yell for help. The throbbing pain didn't make the situation any better, keeping him from thinking clearly and making it hard for him to breathe. He let his head rest against the door and tried to slow his thinking.

_**Oh god I'm gonna die**, _he thought desperately. His breathing was slowing and he was starting to lose his consciousness. _**No! Snap out of it! Stay awake!** _He mentally berated himself, the changeling tried to move again but no avail. _**Alright, think…you can't move, you can't yell…there's got to be an answer**. _He had never thought so logically in his life. _**Think…Think…wait, that's it! Think! I can't yell to anyone for help, but I can still think!** _Beast Boy tightly closed his eyes and tried to clear his mind. His plan was a long shot, but it just might work. If anyone could hear him, _she_ could.

* * *

Back in the common room, Cyborg was just finishing his late night snack as he sat at the kitchen table. The machine half of his mind was running through the day's events and cataloging the new list of criminals that the team had come in contact with into the tower's computer system. The human half of his mind was just enjoying the snack and the quiet that had settled into the room.

Raven had long since finished her tea and had gained her second wind. She was far to engrossed in her book to go to bed now. Besides, she only had a couple more chapters left till the end. It was then, as she sat there with her book in her face, taking in every word the parchment had to offer, that a strange sound in the back of her head began to distract her.

After a few moments of listening to the offending sound she lowered her book and began to listen more carefully. '_**Who is that?**' _She thought to herself. It could just be one of her emotions making a comment about the book she was reading, that happened every now and then. No, this definitely wasn't an emotion. It sounded faint, but she could hear it was a male voice.

Before she could wonder why a male voice would be in her head, it grew louder, though it was still unintelligible it sounded familiar. Very familiar in fact. She closed her eyes, now very interested in what the voice was saying. Then it seemed to go silent for a long moment…not knowing if she should keep listening or go back to reading, she just sat, waiting. Then it came back, this time with a very disturbing message.

'_**Help me**,'_ it said almost in a whisper. Her eyes shot wide open, that sounded just like…but it couldn't be. _'**Help me**,' _the voice said a little louder, the urgency she hadn't heard before suddenly became evident.

She began to breathe a little faster, that had to be him. His voice was unmistakable to her. She'd lived with that voice around her for years, she'd grown accustom to it. The corny jokes meant to make her laugh or crack a rare smile that failed miserably, the constant bickering with Cyborg over meat vs. tofu. The yells of victory and moans of defeat over video games won and lost. Every kind word he said to her and every time he tried to get her to open up. She didn't know why all of this was going through her mind, it was as though his life was flashing before _her _eyes. '**_Wait… but that would mean_**'-

'**HELP ME!**' the voice screamed, the sound of it blaring through her head.

"BEAST BOY!" Raven screamed, as much of a scream as she could with her normally monotone voice. She jumped up from the couch, letting her book fall to the floor.

Her scream startled her bionic teammate. He spun around quickly, letting the plate he had been washing at the sink fall from his hand and crash to the floor. "Wha-" he began to ask, but cut himself off as Raven ran past the kitchen and through the common room doors at breakneck speed, "Oh crap!" he said in a slightly surprised and urgent tone, quickly jumping over the counter in front of him, he ran as fast as his metal body could carry him through the doors leading out into the hall, he caught sight of her just a little bit ahead of him and he sprinted to keep pace with her. "What's going on Rae? What's the matter?" he asked in an urgent and concerned tone as they quickly passed Starfire and Robin's rooms.

"No time! Beast Boy!" was all she said as they approached their green teammate's room.

They came to a stop in front of his door and Raven began quickly typing on the doors access panel. When nothing happened, she turned to Cyborg who was just watching his dark friend wig out. "What's his door's code?!" she asked him.

He could see from her expression that she was frantic, several light bulbs which lit the hallway exploded and everything went dark as her emotions ran rampant. He moved in front of the panel and raised his hand to type; he was becoming a little freaked out too.

"It's-" he never got the chance to finish. A deafening explosion threw them both several feet through the air and away from Beast Boy's door.

Only a few yards from the changeling's doorway, the hallway unceremoniously erupted in a huge fireball, sending chunks of wall and other debris flying through the air. As the fireball drew closer to the two Titans who now lay next to each other, Raven had the presence of mind to throw a bubble of black energy around Cyborg and herself, letting the destructive flames and debris pass over them harmlessly. She lowered the shield and they both shakily stood, supporting each other as they did so.

The whole top floor of the Titan's tower was filled with smoke. Raven and Cyborg coughed as they tried to see through the dense haze. Cyborg engaged his robotic eye to cut through the smoke. He scanned the area where the blast had come from and saw piles of rubble littering the hallway as well as several small fires here and there. His human eye widened in shock as he saw a jagged hole cut out of the tower where Robin's room had once been. Raven walked up next to him, an equally astonished look adorning her normally stoic features. He glanced dazedly at her, muttering the only words his mind could form.

"Oh man…"

* * *

**(A/N) And so ends chapter one. Hope you liked it. **

**Until next time my fellow reading ent****husiasts , which if you're going on to the next chapter will be like, right now...wow right? Anyone? Okay then...  
**


	2. Message Received

**(A/N) Hey again everyone, DeathProofHero here. I've finally had this chapter and the others beta read, so hopefully, they flow together a lot better.**

**HUGE thanks to my beta reader Jadee, she is completely awesome! And a lot of credit goes to her on this one, her wonderful wording has totally helped these chapters, and I hope to have her help for the entire story. So yes, there is much, MUCH more to come.  
**

**So please, read and enjoy. Review if you like, and continue to keep this a flame free zone...**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Teen Titans or anything/anyone else that may appear in this story.  


* * *

  
**

**Chapter two: Message Received**

Robin gently set Starfire on her bed, placing her as she usually liked to sleep, with her feet on her pillow and her head resting on the foot of the bed. A slight smile crept across his face as he watched her sleeping form. He had always found her sleeping habits rather amusing, and now more so than ever he also found it quite cute. The Titans trip to Tokyo several months before had finally brought the two of them together, and for the first time in a long time…he was happy. Robin sighed as he leaned down and gently brushed a stray strand of her long red hair out of her face. He gave her a soft kiss on her forehead and made his way out of her room. He closed her door and walked down the softly lit hallway to his room, lost in his thoughts.

He typed his door's code in and entered, making a beeline for his desk. Though he was tired, he still had the daily reports to fill out. He turned his computer on and opened a few files; he was relieved to see that Cyborg had filled out his part of the reports, leaving only a few things for Robin to complete. A few minutes passed and he was nearly finished when he heard the muffled voices of his teammates pass outside his door, it sounded like they were moving quickly down the hall. He was about to go see what was going on when he heard a faint beeping coming from his desk. He cocked an eyebrow and glanced about the area, not finding anything. Then, he made out a small blinking red light coming from beneath his desk.

In his tired state he didn't really think anything drastic like he usually would; he merely rose from his seat and crouched down to see what the source of the disturbance was. Everything after that seemed to flash by him in an instant. The first sight that met him was an object roughly the size of one of Raven's hardcover books attached to the bottom of his desk. The second thing he noticed made him instantly grow tense. Dozens of colored wires protruded from the device. But the sight that made his blood run cold and his breath catch in his throat was the timer that was attached to the front of device… slowly counting down. Only nine seconds remained.

His body snapped into overdrive and almost as a reflex he grabbed the grappling hook gun attached to his belt. Knowing he wouldn't make it to his door in time, he aimed the gun at his room's small window that faced out towards the bay and pulled the trigger. The timer reached two seconds and he was off through the air. The grapple had broken the glass of his window and caught on the corner of his windowsill, and now it quickly yanked him across the room to the window. The bomb let out a final loud beep, giving him a few precious milliseconds to wrap his cape around his body.

He almost made it to the window when the explosion ripped through his room, blasting him the rest of the way out of the window and into the cold night air. The grapple gave up its hold and recoiled back to the gun causing him to plummet from the tower, his cape flapping furiously as the cold air whipped past him as he passed by the larger windows of the tower. With his grappling hook retracted and once again ready to fire, he took aim at one of the large windows and fired again. The sound of glass breaking and the strong tug against the gun's cable told him he had caught a good hold. He quickly realized what was about to happen next. "Crap!" was all he could get out as the line lost all of its slack and harshly smacked him against another large glass window the next floor down, leaving a large body sized crack in the glass.

He almost blacked out on impact, barely keeping hold of the grappling hook. His vision was blurry but was beginning to clear, giving him a somewhat coherent view of the debris that was falling all around him. His shook his head to clear it and glanced above him, taking in the sight of the damage. A huge jagged hole had replaced his room, the faint orange glow emanating from the hole told him a fire was still ragging within the tower. "Damn…" Robin groaned as he put his other hand on the grapple gun and began to slowly rise towards where the hook had found its hold.

* * *

Cyborg let out another round of coughing as he moved through the smoke filled hall towards the point of the explosion, stopping when Raven's voice reached him, "Cyborg! What's the door code?"

"Oh, right!" He stepped back to Beast Boy's door and quickly typed in the code. The second the door slid open, a blood soaked Beast Boy fell out halfway into the hall. Raven gasped and immediately knelt beside him while Cyborg stood wide eyed and mouth agape. Raven delicately lifted the green Titan's torso into her lap, cradling his head with one hand while the other quickly searched his bloodied back for the source of the injury. What she found made her dizzy with alarm.

"Oh no, Cyborg this is bad...Cyborg!" The metal Titan snapped out of his shock induced trance and looked at his darkly clad friend.

"Uh, g-get Beast Boy to the med bay," he said, the gravity of the situation was rapidly closing in on him. He turned and looked back at the site of the explosion, he was starting to panic."I gotta see if Rob-" A new voice cut him off.

"Friend Cyborg, what has happened?!" Starfire asked in a panicked voice. As she glided up to the jagged hole in the side of the tower, she quickly realized Robin's room was completely destroyed "Robin!" She screamed, rushing through the hole and into the darkness outside the tower. Cyborg finally composed himself and rushed back to Raven who was still holding the completely unresponsive Beast Boy.

Knowing Starfire would find Robin, if there was still anything to find, he plucked the bloody Titan from Raven's arms and rushed towards the med bay.

"Can you heal him?" Cyborg asked in a dark tone, glancing at the hooded girl keeping pace with him.

"The wounds are deep, and there are at least 3 of them. I can stop the bleeding and fix some internal damage, but if I try and heal something that bad all at once…" she trailed off, not wanting to finish her thought. Cyborg pressed her to continue.

"What would happen?" he asked as they reached the med lab doors and entered.

"I…I might…die." She followed Cyborg over to a bed as he placed the deathly pale Beast Boy down and began hooking him up with IV's and monitors.

"Using that much energy could _kill _you?" asked the metal man, a little surprised at the revelation. Raven stepped to the side of the bed and looked at Beast Boy's seemingly frail body. Blood soaked his side and back as well as down his legs, his hair was also matted and discolored by the massive amount of blood he had lost. She stood there looking at his face, noticing how he almost looked serene, she found it haunting. After staring at him for a moment, concern and fear plastered across her normally deadpan face, she remembered Cyborg's question.

"Uh…no, it's not just the energy of my powers it would take." Raven sighed as she tried to think of a good way to explain. "The way I heal others has a lot to do with me _giving _them a rapid form of what is considered a natural healing process. Like normally what would take a few weeks to heal happens in an instant. I actually give them part of my…health, for lack of a better word. There's a good reason things like this," she pointed to Beast Boy, "take a long time to recover from. Over a long period of time, an immense amount of the body's energy is put into healing itself. That's why it takes awhile, so the body isn't put through all that strain at once. That's why I only heal minor injuries when I can- all that strain could kill me." Cyborg sighed as he checked the green Titan's vitals.

"Well, whatever you CAN do, you better do it fast. He's not gonna hold out much longer and it's taking a lot of blood to keep him going as it is." Raven nodded and took in a deep breath as she stepped closer to Beast Boy's bloodied body.

She closed her eyes and put her hands over her green friend's back and side, stopping the excessive bleeding and healing the worst of his internal injuries. She soon became weak from the effort, but kept going, trying to locate any other life threatening wounds. Soon however, the stress to her body became too great and she lost consciousness. Cyborg moved quickly and grabbed the dark Titan in his arms before she could fall to the ground. He carried her over to another bed a few feet from Beast Boy's and set her down gently.

He checked on Beast Boy and saw that Raven's healing had helped the changeling a great deal, though he was still a very long way from safe. The cybernetic Titan was about to go see if Starfire had found Robin when the med bay doors swooshed open, revealing the alien girl with Robin in her arms, much to the 'tin man's' relief.

"Really Star, I'm okay. You don't have to carry me…" The Boy Wonder was protesting weakly, clearly uncomfortable being carried by his _girlfriend_.

"Nonsense Robin, I must be sure you have not come to too great of harm," The orange hued girl replied sternly.

Cyborg walked over to the pair as Starfire placed Robin on the last bed next to Raven. Had this not been an exceedingly intense situation, he would have been laughing his ass off at his fearless leader's bruised ego. But now, the oldest of the titans was just glad to see Robin hadn't been blown away.

"Man, am I glad to see you in one piece. I wanted to look for you myself, but I had to get BB here before…we lost him." Cyborg said, the last words having a very unpleasant effect on him. His normally cheerful expression was replaced with a dark grim shadow of its former self. Not knowing Beast boy was even hurt, both Starfire and Robin looked two beds down at their green friend.

"What the hell happened to him?" Robin asked as an expression far beyond surprise was quickly turning to one of question and anger. He could only guess who would do this to them. The attempt on his life he could take, but his team…his family…no. That he couldn't stand for. Starfire let out a pained gasp as she quickly flew over to Beast Boy's bed, the familiar feeling of tears forming came to her, but she pushed them away, now was not the time for such things. She took in the sight of the unconscious green teen and then glanced to the bed right next to his.

"What has happened to friend Raven?" the Tamaranean asked as she stepped closer to her best friend's bed.

"Well, I don't know what the hell happened to Beast Boy. If I had to guess, I'd say he was stabbed, multiple times…. Raven's down because she healed some of his more severe wounds, all she needs is a little rest and she should be fine." Cyborg answered his friend's questions as he began to look Robin over for injuries.

"Should?" Robin questioned as Cyborg checked his wounds.

"Yeah, it's a long story, but she should be fine." Robin nodded and lay back on the bed.

Robin had been lucky for a guy caught in an explosion; he only had minor burns and a few cuts and bruises thanks to his quick thinking and good use of his cape. The worst of his wounds was a fairly deep cut on his forehead and a bruised rib form when he'd hit that glass full force. Other than that, the Boy Wonder was fine.

* * *

_..._Beast Boy tightly closed his eyes and tried to clear his mind. His plan was a long shot, but it just might work. If anyone could hear him, _she_ could. When he felt his mind was completely empty, he got a clear picture of Raven in his head. Her beautiful hair framing her lovely pale features, those soul piercing violet eyes, her ever so rare smile…perhaps he was focusing a little too much. He pushed those strangely comforting thoughts from his mind and again focused on her as best he could. '_**Raven, can you hear me?**_' he thought quietly at first, still unsure if his plan would work. '_**Please Raven, hear me**__!_' he thought a little harder than before but still received silence. _**I should have known it was a stupid idea **_he thought to himself as tears began to form at the corners of his eyes**. **A single tear ran down his cheek._**I can't believe I'm gonna die like this…they won't even know until the smell sets in!**_ He thought angrily. _**Well, if they can't save me…maybe I can help them**__. _Beast Boy knew they would have a hard time figuring out who had done this, maybe if he could give them a lead, they could stop Slade before he did this to any of them.

He dug deep within himself, looking for any strength he had left. He could feel what little he had, and he knew he had to do at least one thing before he…died. Using strength he had never known he had the changeling shakily and painfully moved his exhausted body so he was sitting on his knees. He looked around for something to write with but found nothing within his limited reach. He saw a pen on his desk which was on the other side of the room; that was definitely not an option. It took every fiber of his being to remain conscious and not fall on his face.

He glanced at the floor, seeing the large pool of blood where he had been sitting. He stared for a moment and then decided it was his only choice from the position he was in, he had to warn them and this was the only way. He stiffly leaned over a bit and submerged his index finger into the pool of blood. He then ran the finger along the wall nearest his door, smearing his grizzly message across it. If they didn't see this, he would be very surprised, if he wasn't dead already. Once he was finished he fell back against the door, every ounce of energy now spent. _**Well…at least they'll know now…man I'm gonna miss them, they were the best**__-_

His thoughts were interrupted by a faint voice in his head; he knew who it was instantly. '_**Who is that?**_' Raven asked, clearly talking to herself. _**She heard me?! She actually heard me!? **_The green Titan thought gleefully, momentarily forgetting his current state as he replayed her voice in his head. _**Alright Rea, listen up, **__'__**Help me**__' _he projected, hope springing up within him. '_**Help me**' _he repeated a little more urgently. Soon though, the feeling of hope faded. His breathing was drastically slowing down and the lightheaded feeling that had been present for sometime was becoming overpowering. His eyelids became so heavy it was as if there was an anvil sitting on each one. He knew he was losing the battle for consciousness _and_ life. His eyes slammed shut and he let one final thought escape with a scream '_**HELP ME!**_' it rang through his head just as he left the conscious world, plummeting into total darkness.

* * *

As soon as Cyborg had finished treating his minor wounds, Robin hopped off his med bay bed and headed for the door, but was stopped by a strong hand on his shoulder. Cyborg wasn't about to let him go without being absolutely sure that his leader was 100%.

"Where do you think you're goin'?" Robin turned to his half metal friend, giving him a quizzical look.

"Where do you think I'm going? We need to find out what happened to Beast Boy. Come along if you're worried about me." Robin shook his friend's hand off his shoulder and moved out the med bay door's.

Cyborg let out a sigh and followed Robin, only pausing to look back at Starfire.

"Stay here and keep an eye on 'em would ya Star?" He asked in a soft voice.

"I most assuredly will friend Cyborg." She replied in an equally soft yet still highly concerned voice.

"Good. Get me if anything changes with them." The alien girl nodded in reply, never taking her eyes off her unconscious friends. Cyborg made his way back to Beast Boy's room and found Robin entering the last few digits of the doors code, flashlight at the ready. They both entered their green friend's room and began looking about the messy living quarters. Robin tried the rooms light switch, but nothing happened.

"Raven had a bit of an outburst earlier, probably fired the circuit breaker for this side of the tower." Cyborg said as he examined the pool of dried blood in front on the door. He shook his head at the sight and began to feel a bit queasy. He glanced around the area, and froze as the flashlight mounted on his shoulder caught something on the wall next to the door. "Oh no," Cyborg said under his breath "Rob, I found something." Robin swung around from his examination of Beast Boy's bedroom window, training the beam of his torch on the wall that Cyborg was facing.

The Boy Wonder's eyes went as wide as saucers at the sight that met him. His expression went rigged as his mind raced. Written across the wall right next to where Cyborg and Raven had found Beast Boy was a large shakily drawn circle with a very familiar S within it, written in the changelings own blood. Robin was fuming with anger as he venomously spat the one name the Titan's hated most in the world, "Slade…"

* * *

"What do we do now, man? Slade is obviously playing for keeps this time. How do we deal with that?" Cyborg asked in a worried tone. The cybernetic Titan wasn't one to freak out in tense situations, but the attempted murder of two of his best friends was very unsettling to him. Robin paced back and forth through Beast Boy's dark messy room trying to collect his thoughts. The mere mention of Slade's name sent his blood boiling and instantly clouded his thoughts.

He shook his head and stopped to stare at the large blood stain on the floor.

"I don't know Cy; I'm not used to dealing with situations like this." The Boy Wonder answered, still staring at the blood stain aimlessly.

"What?!" His teammate yelled in disbelief, "You're all about this investigating stuff man! What do you mean you aren't used to things like this?" Cyborg threw his hands in the air for dramatic emphasis and waited for an answer.

"I don't really deal with murder that much…even attempted murder. I mean I did during my time with Batman, but that was so long ago. I guess I've grown accustom to just putting criminals away for lesser crimes. Besides...no one's really tried to _kill _us before."

"Well," Cyborg said as he leaned against Beast Boy's door frame, "Slade has always been right on the edge when it comes to this kind of thing. I mean, when that chemical from his mask got into your body, your brain almost killed you, and Slade was more than aware of that. And if it hadn't been for Terra stopping the city from being destroyed, his plan would have worked, and that would totally have killed a bunch of people, not just us. When you think about it, an up close and personal attack was the next logical step." It was true, Slade had been the only villain to really try and kill them outright. A shiver went through Robin's body as he thought about the possibilities. The two teens stood in silence for a few minutes, both thinking about the situation. Robin broke the silence with a sobering question.

"How did he manage to get in the tower without us knowing? We've got this place rigged with so many security systems that we would know if a fly landed wrong on one of the windows. And our rooms are wired with an alarm network, that's why we have the codes, and we're the only ones who know them."

"Yeah, and if the power was cut, or someone attempted to turn the system off, my suit's sensors would be alerted, and there's no way to shut my suit's system off without, ya know, us knowing about it." Cyborg rubbed his chin as he thought, it seemed no matter what they did to protect the tower, Slade always found a way around it.

The boys once again went into their own thoughts but were soon interrupted by a beeping emanating from Cyborg's arm. He hit a couple buttons and Starfire's voice played out over his built in com.

"Friends, Raven has awoken! Do you wish to return and talk to her?" The alien girl asked in a more cheerful voice than she had had earlier.

"Yeah Star, We'll be right there." Cyborg shut off the com and moved to Beast Boy's door, "You comin' man?" He asked as he stood in the doorway. Robin looked around the room and then to his friend.

"No. You go ahead; I've got some things to look into. Go make sure Raven is alright." The Boy Wonder moved past Cyborg and proceeded down the charred hallway to the towers crime lab, still deep in thought.

"Alright man," Cyborg called after his friend. "But watch out for anymore surprises, we don't know what else Slade has done to the tower." Robin waved his hand as he continued on his way and soon disappeared into the darkness of the hall. Cyborg looked on as Robin went out of sight, knowing it would probably be a long time before he saw his leader again. He let out an exhausted sigh and walked towards the med lab. "The next time I see you Slade, I swear I'm gonna kill you." Cyborg vowed quietly to himself with a very dark expression on his formally cheerful face. Slade should know better than to mess with a guy's family…

* * *

Robin reached the crime lab and entered, pleased to see the light over his desk remained on, having been spared from the loss of power to the other parts of the tower. He moved to his desk and started moving files to their proper file cabinets. He then grabbed a couple large boxes that had only been on the shelf for a short time, for Robin had finally started to believe that Slade was really gone, he had put every file with every piece of evidence and every lead into those boxes. It had been a great relief to finally let his tormentor go, to move on and focus on what they faced in the present. Things had gone quite smoothly since The Brotherhood of Evil had been defeated, along with almost all of the Titan's enemies that had once run rampant in the streets of Jump and Steele City.

But now, Slade was back. And this time, it looked as though he was going to make this encounter…the last. Though whether it would be ended with the Titan's demise or Slade's had yet to be seen. Robin set the boxes on his desk and started to pull various things out to examine once again. The first thing he retrieved was an old mask of Slade's, the one that had held the hallucinogen that caused Robin to see Slade whenever he was in the dark. Robin examined the mask for a moment and then placed it on his desk before reaching back into the box.

The next item to be pulled out was a cataloged binder with every news paper article and every available piece of documentation on the criminal mastermind. Robin flipped through the pages and relived many chilling and anger inducing moments throughout the Titan's history with Slade. He remembered the time he had become Red X to get closer to Slade, and the time when he had actually become his apprentice. He remembered the times his team had been forced to fight a former friend, Terra. How the whole incident had had a horrible effect on Beast Boy, leaving the green Titan wallowing for months afterward.

All these memories and many others plagued Robin every day. And they would most likely be with him for the rest of his life. He finished emptying the boxes and moved them to another part of the room. Returning to his desk, he took a seat and was about to commence one of his famous cram sessions when a harsh kick was landed on his right cheek, launching him out of his chair and across the room into a wall filled with evidence from crimes past. The Boy Wonder landed roughly after breaking several shelves in the process, which sent the shelves contents to the floor with him. He shook the kick off and got to his feet, putting a hand over his already bruised rib. The only light was the one over his desk, which made it impossible to see who the kick had come from.

Robin however didn't need to see his assailant to know who it was.

"You should have left the tower when you had the chance Slade. You must be getting sloppier than I thought." Robin brushed himself off and moved back towards his desk, his eyes closed as he tried to focus on where his attacker was. A very important skill he had learned on his trip to find the True Master. He listened intently for the slightest sound to give his opponent away, and then he heard the smallest of movements, which had to have been a boot scuffing on the ground. Robin drew his bo-staff with lighting quick reflexes and launched himself at his quarry.

The Boy Wonder brought his weapon down on his target with expert force, slicing it completely in half. Robin of course knew that this was not Slade, but one of his robotic stand-ins. He stood up straight and closed his eyes again, aware of the fact that they rarely traveled alone.

"Very impressive Robin, not only did you survive my first little…trial, but you seem to have honed your skills quite a bit since our last meeting. Though I'm a little disappointed you still think I'd do such a menial task as delivering a message in person."

"Ha! You call blowing up half my tower and nearly killing my friend a mere message?" Robin asked, his anger growing every second. "That just further proves how much of a sick mind you are!" Slade chuckled at the teen's anger, enjoying how much of a rise he could get out of his old nemesis.

"Come now Robin, you should know the way I work by now. If I had meant to carry out my plan tonight, you and your pathetic little green friend would most assuredly be dead right now. Though I must say I'm surprised Beast Boy survived. I was worried for a moment that my minion here had been a little overzealous in his… butchering. Would you have guessed Beast Boy was a crier? Personally, I think the water works were a little over the top-"

"Shut up!" Robin yelled into the darkness, "You're a horrible liar Slade. Beast Boy would never have given you the satisfaction!" Robin made a dash for the light switch near the door, covering the few feet between the door and his position quickly. He flicked the switch and illuminated the entire crime lab, but other than the destroyed Sladebot, the room was empty. Slade let out another chuckle, "This was only a message Robin, and I do believe it has been received. Your time is coming to an end, and so is Jump City's. It all starts with your little team, then the rest of your beloved Teen Titans. Don't worry though, I'll give you time enough to lick your wounds, not that it will matter. But it is better to meet your end fully prepared."

"Whatever your plan is, Slade, we'll put a stop to it. We always do." Robin slowly walked towards the destroyed robot, "Batman taught me many things while I trained with him. One thing that always stayed with me was what he said about madmen like you. Some of you couldn't be dealt with normally, that _you_ have proven many times. He called those men mad dogs, unforgiving, uncontrollable and unreasonable. That's all you are Slade! And if you force my hand, I'll put you down without a second thought." As Robin spat out these words, he knew it wouldn't mean anything to Slade, but he didn't care.

"A truly moving speech Robin, though pointless as it is, you seem so convinced. I do hope you try and live up to that speech. It will make my victory all the more enjoyable." Robin finally had enough; he knew the voice was coming from the head of the destroyed Sladebot. He moved over and picked it up. Looking at the screen he saw Slade's face staring back at him.

"Spend some time with your friends Robin. You won't have them for much long-" Before Slade could finish his thought Robin smashed the robots head against the ground and stomped it for good measure, completely destroying it and yelling as he did so. The Boy Wonder stood over the robotic remains, breathing heavily from the exertion and the anger that surged through his body, and regained his composure.

"Whenever you decide to crawl out of whatever hole your hiding in, Slade," he said under his breath, still trying to calm down, "I'll be there. And I _will_ put you down, no matter what it takes."

* * *

**(A/N) And there we have the second chapter. Hope it was worth your while. Chapters 3 and 4 are up and five is in progress, so stay tuned! **

**Thanks to everyone who has read this far, it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside...or, on a less creepy note, it's nice to know people like it ;)  
**

**Till next time,**

**~DPH  
**


	3. The First Move

**(A/N) ****Hello again everyone, finally finished editing chapter three, along with the help of my beta reader, Jadee. A big thanks to her once again, she's made these chapters flow SO much better, really great job.  
**

******As always, reviews are much appreciated, but of course feel free to do whatever. Except flames! I mean come on, no one needs them really, right? And hey! Here's a disclaimer...**

**DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own the Teen Titans or anything/anyone else that may appear in this story.  
**

**Also, if you notice any spelling/grammar errors, please point them out, I hate that kind of stuff...  
**

* * *

Chapter 3: The First Move

A little while after Robin had gone off to the tower's crime room, Cyborg had returned to the med bay to find Raven in one of Starfire's oh-so-famous bone crushing hugs. Starfire was overjoyed that her best friend was awake and unharmed. The Tamaranean princess released her friend once she saw Cyborg had entered the room, and after Raven had regained the ability to breath, Cyborg filled them in on what the two boys had found in Beast Boy's room.

The girls both had the same reaction to the news: anger. Several pieces of medical equipment had exploded as Raven let a bit too much anger out, and the alien girl had nearly smashed one of the empty beds to bits before Cyborg had calmed her down.

The three of them talked over the situation for several minutes before Robin suddenly appeared in the room, a large bruise he hadn't had when he'd left them earlier was formed on his right cheek. Starfire gasped at the sight of him, to which he quickly raised a hand in reassurance.

"I'm OK Star, it's just a little bruise," he attempted to console her.

"What the heck happened, man? I told ya to watch your back out there!" Cyborg exclaimed and threw his arms up for dramatic emphasis.

Robin rolled his eyes and replied, "Yea, like I knew there would be a Sladebot waiting for me in the crime room. Calm down Cy, it's nothing I couldn't handle…" The Boy Wonder walked over and took a seat next to Raven on her med bay bed. He gingerly ran a gloved hand over his newly acquired bruise and winced slightly.

"Slade and I had a little heart to heart with our fists," The team leader said, some uncharacteristic sarcasm in his voice. "He said our time is coming to an end, and so is Jump City's. Looks like we were right, Cyborg, Slade means to destroy us this time. And he's not gonna wait long either," Robin glanced over at Beast Boy's comatose form, the sight giving him an even grimmer outlook on the situation.

He sighed and looked back to his teammates.

"How long do you think he'll be down for?" he asked the teams medically inclined member. Cyborg shook his head and sighed as well.

"He's in pretty bad shape. Even with Raven's help, he's still in a coma. If I can keep him stable...a month, at the least, before we could even hope he wakes up. If you're asking how long until he's ready to fight again," the half metal man looked over at his best friend, lying motionlessly on his med bay bed, "don't even think about it. He's gonna need physical therapy for his wounds, and I still need to get a doc in here to make sure his spinal cord wasn't injured. If something like that has happened, we're gonna have a whole new kinda crap storm on our hands."

Raven, who was sitting in the lotus position on her med lab bed next to Robin, pulled her hood up to conceal her face. Cyborg's words were having a horrible effect on her; she could feel tears forming in the corners of her eyes. To see Beast Boy in this condition was harder to handle than she thought it would be. She mentally berated herself for being as emotional as Starfire, who, surprisingly for the situation, looked strangely calm as Robin and Cyborg talked. Raven was just glad no one was paying attention to her at the moment.

Robin placed a hand over his eyes, resting his head against it as he let out another stressed sigh. "I hate to do it guys, but there's no way we can go a man down for that long, especially right now. We wouldn't last a day against Slade in this condition." The Boy Wonder looked back up at his three friends once more as he talked.

"Don't say it man…" Cyborg said in a pained tone, "We can't do that to him, Rob!"

"What other choice do we have?" Raven interjected with a shrug of her shoulders.

"You know how sensitive the Grass Stain is about his place on the team! He's told me at least a dozen times he feels inadequate to the rest of us, like he doesn't offer the team anything." The cybernetic Titan crossed his arms and shook his head.

"Come on Cyborg, we all know what a big part of the team he is. He would want us to be the best we could against Slade." Robin said, trying to reason with his older friend.

"DON'T talk about him in the past tense man…" The metal man narrowed his human eye at Robin menacingly.

"You know what I meant Cyborg. Look at this reasonably, please…It's not like it would be permanent. As soon as he's back to normal his spot will be waiting for him." Robin was unflinching under Cyborg's harsh gaze, causing his friends expression to soften.

"He's right Cyborg, Beast Boy will understand." Raven said in a soft tone to her usual raspy voice.

Cyborg still stood with his arms crossed. At her words he looked at the ground for a moment before closing his eyes, nodding his head slowly as he did so.

"Yea, guess there's really no other choice…" he said in a defeated tone.

"But who shall we find to do the 'filling in' for Beast Boy?" Starfire asked in her usual spotty grasp on the English language.

"I'll contact Bumble Bee, see if she can send anyone from the East tower our way," Cyborg said, looking at the alien girl standing next to him. "If she can't, I'll ask around the Titans network, see if anyone else is free."

Robin nodded, "Good, I should get back to work. I've got some things that still need looking into." The Boy Wonder hopped off the bed and made his way for the door.

"Wait," Raven's voice brought everyone's eyes to her. "I think I can help Beast Boy recover faster than Cyborg estimated. I can't do another healing session like the one I just did, but I can work with him a little every day. It would only make me a little weak, so I could still help against Slade." She looked at Robin, waiting to see if he would refuse or not. He thought it over for a moment, and then nodded his approval.

"Just don't push yourself too hard. We can't afford to lose you too. If you can get Beast Boy back to normal faster, there's no way I'd say no." He said with a slight smile.

Raven gave him a nod of acknowledgment and he exited the room, leaving the other three to talk. It was now only a little after 4am, and they all finally realized how tired they really were. Cyborg glance at the power meter on his arm.

"Whoa, I'm running on empty here, girls, I gotta go recharge before I conk out. You gonna be okay Raven? Need anything?" he asked as he quickly checked Beast Boy's vitals one last time.

"Yes, I'm fine. I just need a little rest and I'll be back to normal. Go ahead and get some sleep." Raven said as she lay back on her bed and got comfortable, folding her cloak around her for warmth.

"You're gonna sleep in here?" Cyborg asked, knowing his dark friends dislike for the med bay.

"Yes. I want to start working on Beast Boy as soon as I wake up." She answered with a yawn.

"Alright, see ya later then. Come on Star, you need to get some sleep too." The alien girl rubbed her eyes tiredly and followed Cyborg out of the med bay, turning the lights off as she passed the switch. She whispered as she closed the door.

"Have the pleasant dreams, friend Raven…"

* * *

Raven fell asleep quickly; the sheer exhaustion of the healing she had performed hours earlier coupled with the lack of sleep over the past two days had definitely taken a toll on her. She slept peacefully for a few hours before waking once more. The sounds of Beast Boy's monitors were all that greeted her.

The events of earlier that morning, which had seemed so far away in her dreams, came back to her in a flourish of emotions. The familiar sound of a light bulb bursting a few feet away told her she was in need of a good cup of tea, and a few hours meditation. But since she didn't have the desire to leave the med bay just for a cup of tea she decided to meditate for a bit.

Raven sat up in her bed, once again taking the lotus position. She closed her eyes and focused on finding her center, then, she began reciting her famous three word mantra. "Azarath…Metrion…Zinthos…Azarath…Metrion…Zinthos…" She remained in deep meditation for an hour before finally coming back from her trance.

She floated back down to her bed and stretched her tired body. She then decided it was time to try healing Beast Boy a little more. Stepping down from the bed, she made her way to the changeling's sleeping form. Raven had to admit he looked a lot better than he had earlier that morning, no longer covered in his own blood after Starfire had cleaned him up, and dressed in one of the hospital gowns Cyborg kept around. Raven didn't even want to think of how awkward that changing must have been for her alien friend, though they were all practically family after all.

Raven saw that the green teen's face still held the same hauntingly serene look he had had before. She very carefully rolled him onto his side so she could have a clear view of his wounds. They had sealed up quite nicely, but he still had some internal trauma she couldn't fix entirely. She moved her hand along his back, a bluish white glow emanating from her palm.

She could feel some of his internal injuries mending slowly, but she also felt her strength start to leave her. She stopped immediately, knowing she had to save her energy for anything that may come the Titan's way later. She hated stopping though. She hated not being able to fix him.

She stood once again, staring intently at his peaceful face. She found herself wondering how it felt. Wondering if it was painful or if you didn't feel it at all, if the only thing you knew was that it was happening. _**Of course it was painful **_she thought to herself, _**Getting stabbed isn't something you just shake off. But still…he looks so at peace…**_ As she continued to stare at him, lost in her thoughts, she did something she never thought she'd do in her entire life…she reached over and took his hand into her own.

His heart monitor showed his heart rate increase slightly at her touch, she blushed despite herself, but didn't let go of his hand. She had heard that people in a coma could sometimes react to physical contact, or the voice of a loved one, but she had never put much stock in it, until now.

After a few minutes of standing there holding his hand, she began to feel hungry. Mostly though, she felt the extreme need for a cup of tea. Raven decided she had done all she could for him for the day, and decided to head to the common room. She let go of his hand and carefully placed it at his side, she turned to leave, but turned back to him. She hesitated for a moment before moving closer to his bed and leaning over so that her mouth came right up to his ear.

"I don't know if you can hear me Beast Boy, but if you can…don't give up on us. We need you now more than ever, so please…don't give up in there…" she said in an almost whisper. His heart monitor sped up once more, causing her to blush again, though she wasn't entirely sure why. She stood back up all the way, turned, and moved out of the med lab, heading for the common room.

If she had stayed a few seconds more, she might have seen the almost imperceptible smile creep onto his previously vacant face.

* * *

Raven had made her tea in a rather sluggish fashion compared to her usual calculated method. She still was lost in her thoughts, which all seemed to center around one particular green teammate as of late. She wondered if he would, or _could, _recover from his wounds. She then wondered about life without him around, what that would do to the team. She found it entirely overwhelming that only a few hours before, they had all been fine.

Her thoughts were violently interrupted by the blaring sound of the tower's alarm. She was so startled that she spilled the last of her tea all over the couch. She cursed under her breath as the other three functional titans rushed into the room. Robin and Cyborg took a beeline to the control console, Cyborg taking the main seat, and checked to see what the disturbance was, while Starfire floated over to where Raven now stood, directly behind Cyborg's chair.

"Looks like his promised respite wasn't as long as I thought it would be, some Sladebots are causing trouble in a Wayne Enterprise's warehouse downtown." Robin said as he studied the information on the screen.

"It also looks like we're not gonna have time to wait for our little 'replacement' to arrive either." Cyborg added from his seat in front of the display.

"Alright, let's just hope there's not too many of these guys there. Titans GO!" And with the utterance of Robin's favorite catch phrase, the four-man team rushed out of the common room.

* * *

Slade studied Robin's incensed face through the robots video screen intently, relishing the helplessness of his enemy's current situation. "Spend some time with your friends Robin. You won't have them for much long-" His words were cut off when Robin smashed the robots severed into the ground, ending their little 'chat'. Slade chuckled at Robin's excessive anger, though he could hardly blame his former apprentice.

He looked to another screen that resided on the wall he stood in front of and watched as Robin stood in the tower's crime room for a moment, looking at the destroyed robot that lay before him. Robin then curtly exited the room and walked through the main hall towards the med lab. Slade marveled at the fact that none of the Titans were aware of the many cameras hidden throughout their precious tower.

The sound of footsteps on the metal platform which Slade was currently standing on, told the criminal mastermind that his newly acquired apprentice was approaching.

"Good, you are ready for your next task, my apprentice?" Slade asked over his shoulder, still facing the many TV screens in front of him.

"Yes master," replied a mechanical sounding voice. Slade turned and faced the other figure in the room. The man standing before him was dressed in a suit similar to that which Slade's previous apprentice had worn, with the addition of a mask. It wasn't the same as Slade's; this one covered most of the man's face, but left his steely blue colored eyes uncovered.

His dull brown hair was cut military style, giving him a very uniform appearance. He was as tall as Slade, and just as imposing. He had the build of an Olympic swimmer, which added to his ominous visage. He held a helmet under his arm as he waited for Slade to give him his orders, shifting uneasily as he watched his masked master.

"I've located sufficient arms for the next phase of my plan. There is a warehouse owned by Wayne Enterprises located in downtown Jump City, I want you to take a team and secure the munitions stored there. The building will be wired with security systems to alert the local law enforcement, but they won't be a problem. If they get in your way, feel free to…_improvise._" A smirk played across the master criminals face as he emphasized the last word. Though the man couldn't see his master's face, he could sense the smirk, and gave one himself.

"What of the Titans, master?" the Apprentice asked, his smirk disappearing at the mention of the teen heroes.

Slade chuckled before he answered, "They won't have enough time to do anything significant. If they attack, distract them until the supplies are loaded up." Slade turned away from his apprentice and looked once more at the multiple TV screens.

"Now, go and await my command. There are still some things I must prepare." The apprentice nodded and turned to leave, but paused as Slade spoke once more, "Remember, my Apprentice, you are not to kill the titans...at least, not yet. Do what you must to distract them, but be sure they do not come to too much harm. Revenge is a delicate thing to plan, and I have much in store for them yet." Slade never turned away from the screens in front of him as he said this, still intently observing the titans on the screen.

"As you wish, master," The Apprentice exited the room, leaving Slade alone once more.

He laughed to himself as he watched the titans in the tower's med bay, and watched as they went their separate ways for the night.

"Soon Robin…soon you will see just how useless you and your friends are to this city…and so will everyone else."

* * *

**(A/N) So ends chapter 3. I know, I totally suck for putting in all that talking and BBRea stuff, revealing a new character, and setting up a fight scene, then leaving you with NOTHING. But I promise, next chapter will be the first of many, MANY fights.  
**

**Until next time everyone,  
**

**~DeathProofHero  
**


	4. The Apprentice and the Primal side

**(A/N)**** Hey readers (How ever few you may be). Those of you who have stuck around this long, you know who you are, and you ROCK! I know it's been a couple (4!) months since I updated Shock and Awe, and for that, I am very sorry. It's taken me and my Beta reader forever to put the finishing touches on this chapter, due to various schedule problems and heavy work loads and blah blah blah. I'm sure you've all heard that stuff enough before, not to mention dealt with it yourselves. But anyway, here it is...**

**Special thanks to my AWESOME Beta reader Jadee, she's really gifted with her writing skills, and very worth the wait of her hectic schedule. Another thanks to the readers who are still reading this fic, as well as those of you just finding it.**

**Now, without any further ado, here it is...**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Teen Titans or anything/anyone else that may appear in this story. Song titles were borrowed for this chapters section titles which I also do NOT own.  
**

**Chapter 4: The Apprentice and the Primal Side**

* * *

**Land Of Confusion:  
**

The darkness that surrounded Beast Boy was immense and suffocating; he couldn't even see his hands in front of his face. Hell, he didn't even know where his hands _were _at this point. _**I never thought death would be like this, **_thought the green teen as he seemed to float in the dark abyss. _**I thought there'd be like…I don't know… a bunch of light, maybe some pearly gates or something… **_Soon he started to ponder what the darkness could also possibly be,_** Oh no! Maybe I'm in hell! But…where's all the lakes of fire and brimstone?! **_This thought concerned him a great deal as he began to panic.

A strange voice quickly snapped him out of his worry, "You're not in hell," it said in a deep and gravelly tone that was almost a growl, yet at the same time calm and relaxed. Beast Boy was startled by the sudden interruption of his thoughts, but intrigued nonetheless.

"H-how do you know?" he asked the voice nervously.

"Because, you're not dead." As the voice said this, a distant speck of light suddenly appeared within Beast Boy's field of vision. It was awash in many different colors which made it almost too bright to look at. In an instant the light rushed towards him, moving faster than anything he'd ever seen. The changeling covered his eyes, finally locating his hands, as the now blinding light surrounded him. He waited a few seconds before carefully peeking through his fingers, trying to catch a glimpse of anything. The sight that met him was far more than a little surprising.

In every direction he looked, he saw nothing but beautiful landscape as far as the eye could see. All around him were the biomes of Earth. A plethora of flatlands, grasslands, deserts, swamps, lakes, oceans, savannas and many others all encircling him, and seeming to meet at one point, which just happened to be exactly where he now stood.

The teen, noticing this anomaly, looked down at his feet at what looked to be the meeting point of all the biomes. He jumped backwards in a startled fashion as he saw a swirling vortex of color roughly the circumference of a pitcher's mound, though completely flat, right where he had been standing. The tip of each biome's border melted with the others, making something that was similar to a lava lamp concoction which Beast Boy found strangely hypnotic. He backed up a few steps until he ran into a mass of some sort.

The changeling quickly spun around and came face to face with an imposing figure. He stared at the person's face wide-eyed, a look of shock and confusion clearly visible. The figure was almost an exact double of Beast Boy, save for the fact that he had a notably more mature look about him, along with a few more inches in the height department.

He stood nearly a foot taller than the Titan, with long, scruffy green hair which came down to his shoulders and much larger fangs. Though even with these changes to his appearance, his face was still unmistakably that of the green teen. The older looking Beast Boy smiled, bearing a sharp row of teeth as he did so.

"You're in a coma at the moment, but certainly not dead." He spoke with the same deep gravelly voice Beast Boy had heard earlier.

The changeling shook off his dumbstruck look and eyed his older looking self warily, "Are you…me?" he asked, still quite confused by the whole situation.

His doppelganger chuckled a bit at the question before answering,

"In a way, yes, I'm a part of you."

"What do you mean a part of me? Wait a sec…are you like one of my emotions or somethin'? Like Raven has?" Beast Boy asked while rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

"No," His older appearing self replied. "Your mind doesn't work like Raven's. Her emotions are splintered, a self-defense tactic against her powers. If her emotions weren't separated, her powers would be impossible to control. You, on the other hand, have no need to be separated from your emotions. Instead, I represent the primal half of your mind. I basically put the Beast in Beast Boy."

Beast Boy looked questioningly at his self-proclaimed other half, "Hold on, if you're me, then why didn't I know all that already?"

"Because, your conscious self has the attention span of a goldfish, thus you forget things pretty quickly, unless of course they're really important to you. That's why I'm here. It's partially my duty to retain all the information you have received and are going to receive in your life-time, so that you may call upon it when you need to. Raven told you about her emotions before, your conscious mind just forgot."

Beast Boy quirked an eyebrow, "Huh, that's pretty cut and dry isn't it?" His primal half nodded his acknowledgement. "You know, for _my_ primal side you speak really...uh, what's the word?"

"Articulately?" his doppelganger offered, raising an eyebrow.

"Yea, that's it! No wait…what does that mean again?"

Beast Boy's primal half sighed and rubbed his temple, "Trust me, that's what you meant."

"Anyway, why do you sound smarter than me?" Beast Boy pressed.

"Because I do more than provide you with the wants, desires and knowledge of every animal you know how to change into. I also hold the totality of your factual knowledge. And since I'm bothering to divulge my nature to you, you additionally might like to know that I am also the part of you that speaks and acts for..._Him._"

"Uhh…_Him_?" Beast Boy asked, quirking an eyebrow.

His primal half smirked, which brought about a quizzical look on the young Titan's face. Suddenly, the older looking of the two began to transform. Beast Boy cautiously took a step back as the Beast appeared before him. He had never seen _himself _as the Beast before, only Adonis's version. He'd never actually seen what he looked like, what the others must have seen him as, and he really didn't like it.

The Beast had the same smirk as the primal half of Beast Boy's mind, only slightly darker. This made the Titan a little uneasy, to say the least. The Beast morphed back and Beast boy once again faced his older double. "Hmm, guess you really are my primal side then." The changeling stated with a nervous chuckle as he absently rubbed the back of his neck. His doppelganger merely nodded in response, still smirking for some reason.

"I've got another question," Beast boy started as he looked around at the vast and varied landscape of his mind. "Why am I here?"

"Ah, good question." He said, running a hand through his long, unkempt green hair. "I'm not entirely sure myself, though I do have a theory…" the primal side responded, his face turning more serious as he did so.

"Please," Beast Boy gestured for his other half to continue.

"Well…I believe your conscious self has retreated deeper into your mind, as a result of your coma, which dropped you out here," He said with a gesture towards their surroundings. "You came very close to death you know. As a matter of fact, you would be dead now, if Raven hadn't healed you like she did."

Beast Boy looked intently at his primal side at the mention of her name.

"Raven healed me?" he asked in a slightly happier tone than he realized. This caused the primal side to give him a questioning look, which the changeling didn't seem to notice. "The last thing I remember was blacking out in my room. Does that mean they saved me?" he asked in a hopeful voice, "Wait…If I'm in a coma, then how do you know she healed me?"

"Well, common sense really," The doppelganger shrugged. "They obviously did something or else you'd be dead. And Raven would definitely try and heal you after something like this. But mostly, I know because I can hear them talking."

"You can?" Beast Boy asked slightly surprised.

"Of course I can." The primal side stated matter-of-factly. "Most people can still hear what is happening around them even in a coma, though some don't have the mental capability to understand any of it. Still, human contact, be it by touch, or speech, does have an effect on the mind, no matter what state it's in. Except, you know, when you're dead…but that's kinda self-explanatory."

Beast boy quirked an eyebrow at this statement, "Let me guess, I got all that from listening to Cyborg, right?"

His primal self chuckled, "Precisely."

"Ha, whaddya know. I'm more observant than I look," Beast Boy said with a proud grin. His other half gave a slight smile and rolled his eyes.

They both became quiet after that, Beast Boys double seemed to contemplate something rather intently, while the Titan just stared at him. After a few moments of awkward silence, he spoke once more.

"Would you like to hear something?" The primal side asked suddenly, "I heard it just a few minutes before you appeared here. It's rather perplexing really…" he finished, trailing off as he spoke.

"Um…sure," Beast Boy said with a shrug. Somewhat curious about what could have his other half so puzzled.

His primal side closed his eyes for a moment, as if searching for something within his thoughts. Then, a voice came through the air as clear as crystal, filling the previously silent landscape. Beast Boy recognized the voice immediately.

"Raven…" he muttered.

"_I don't know if you can hear me Beast Boy, but if you can…don't give up on us. We need you now more than ever, so please…don't give up in there…._"

He was completely taken aback by her tone. Here words weren't exactly profound, but it was more in the _way _she said it. She didn't convey her normal monotone, she sounded almost…affectionate? _**No, it couldn't be that…but then what was it?**_ He thought to himself. She definitely didn't sound like herself.

"Do you hear what's so intriguing about that? She sounded completely out of character, didn't she?" the primal side asked, tearing Beast Boy from his thoughts.

"Yeah, that was…weird," he replied lamely, once again losing his train of thought. "What do you think it means?"

"Well," the primal side began, "Other than the obvious conclusion that she's having a mental breakdown of some kind…the only other thing I can think of is…" He paused for a moment, slightly uncomfortable with giving the explanation.

"What?" Beast Boy pressed.

"I think she could quite possibly…_like_ you." The doppelganger said, putting emphasis on the last part.

Beast Boy stared blankly at his other half for a moment, looking as though his brain had stopped working. Then, he broke out in hysterical laughter, falling to the ground and rolling, holding his sides as he did so. His primal side didn't particularly like being laughed at, which was evident by the agitated look now spread across his face.

After a few minutes, Beast Boy's laughing calmed down and he got to his feet once more, holding his now aching sides. "Oh man," he said as he wiped a tear from his eye. "That was the funniest thing I've heard in a long time. You really had me goin' there for a minute dude." He chuckled, once again looking at his doppelgangers face.

When he saw the agitated look glaring back at him, he suddenly felt that perhaps it wasn't a joke. "Hold on now…you weren't serious…were you?" he asked in an astonished tone, mouth agape at the mere thought that it might have been true.

"Do I look like I'm joking?" the primal side said, pointing to his now clearly deadpan expression.

Beast Boy's mind took a serious hit on that one. He once again had a vacant look plastered across his face. _**Could she really…like me? **_He thought, trying to get his head around the crazy idea. _**No way, Raven is totally not into me. I would so pick up on something like that. She was probably just concerned about her teammate being in a coma. Yea, that's gotta be it. **_He tried to reassure himself, if she did like him, then the world he knew had gone completely insane!

The primal side soon became concerned by the Titan's unstable appearance. He took a step forward and waved a hand in front of Beast Boy's face. Trying to rouse him from his current state, and discern whether or not he had broken the young hero with his explanation.

It seemed to work as the green teen suddenly shook his head, attempting to clear his strange thoughts. He glanced at his primal self, blushing slightly as he realized he had spaced out. The entire conversation was just a bit too uncomfortable for Beast Boys tastes, so he quickly tried to change the subject.

"Sooo…how do I get outta here?" he asked in a nervous tone, hoping his other half would let the previous subject pass. "You know, back to the real world…back to my friends." The changeling said a little steadier.

His doppelganger raised an eyebrow at the sudden change of conversation. He almost said more, but decided to indulge the Titan's desire to move away from the previous subject.

"It all depends on how long it takes you to heal. Everything non-vital to your body's survival has been put on standby to focus on the parts that need healing, that includes the strain that would come from you being conscious."

"Aw man, you mean I have to wait for my body to heal all the way before I'll wake up!?" Beast Boy asked in a slightly whiny voice, seeming to forget the uncomfortable discussion he had just gotten out of. "Are you sure there's nothing I could do to, ya know…speed up the process or something?"

The primal side pondered this for a moment before speaking, "Well…there is something you could try, I'm not sure if it'd be any faster, but if you're willing-"

"Dude, I'm totally ready to try anything if it'll get me to wake up!" Beast Boy interrupted excitedly, leaping at the chance to speed things along.

"Alright," His primal self said as he walked past Beast Boy, "come with me."

Beast Boy quickly followed as his primal self led him back to the strange vortex he had seen earlier. "What is that thing?" he asked as they came to a stop in front of it.

"It's the portal from your inner mind to your conscious self. Whenever you picture an animal you want to turn into, it comes here and passes through; allowing you to change into whatever it is you wanted."

"What do you mean the animals come here?" Beast Boy asked in a confused tone.

"You didn't think all this was just for show did you?" His primal self asked as he gestured to their surroundings. "Look," he pointed deep into one of the biomes, a savanna by the look of it. His finger stopped on something in the distance. Whatever it was, it was so far away that Beast Boy, even with his superior eyesight, had to squint to make out what it was. When he had focused in enough, he could see what looked like a green gazelle eating savanna grass. And right next to it stood a green and black striped zebra which appeared to also be eating.

"Think of them as your own little versions of Raven's emotions, only different…if that makes sense."

"Whoa…that's so cool!" exclaimed Beast Boy "Does that mean EVERY animal I can change into is in here too?" His other half nodded and spoke again.

"So I believe the same basic principal applies. If you go through the portal, it could help you wake up quicker, though you still may end up being in limbo for a while. At least until your body decides it's healed enough."

Beast Boy thought this over for a few moments before looking at his primal side once more.

"I'll take my chances," he said with a smile.

"Very well, step on." His counterpart ordered. Beast Boy did as he was asked and tentatively stepped onto the vortex. It was still solid under his feet, though it looked as if he would sink into it like water.

"Now," his other half began, "when you're ready, picture yourself as you would when transforming back into your human form. If you do that, you should be on your way." His face grew more serious as he continued. "I warn you though, if you should awake sooner than your body intends, the results could be _very _unpleasant…."

Beast Boy nodded, "I understand, thank you for all the help. I've definitely learned a lot more than I thought I could in a day." He said with a chuckle.

His primal side smirked, "You're welcome. Though technically, it wasn't anything you didn't already know."

"True I suppose. You know, I never would have pictured my _primal _self being…nice." Beast Boy stated thoughtfully.

"Well, as you've seen, I do have my bad days…" as he said this, Beast Boy saw his doppelganger's eyes flash between his own and the Beast's.

The changeling felt a chill go through him and decided he had stayed long enough, "Uh, well…guess I'll get goin' then" he said with a nervous chuckle "See ya." And with that, Beast Boy got a picture of himself in his mind, and sank into the portal.

One last thought went through him as his head passed under the surface. _**Well, that was…interesting....**_

* * *

_**The Game:  
**_

Robin's cape whipped furiously in the wind as his R-cycle quickly carried him through the heavy mid-morning traffic, though most cars pulled out of his way if they saw him coming. It wasn't very often that the Titans didn't have a good reason for blasting through traffic with their various modes of transportation, so no one really minded it. Cyborg trailed a few car lengths behind him in the T-car, while Raven and Starfire flew high above, taking in a bird's eye view of the area.

Robin quickly glanced back at the T-car as he activated his helmet's communicator.

"Are you sure Beast Boy will be safe by himself in his condition?" He asked Cyborg in a very leader like, yet still concerned voice.

"Yeah man," Cyborg replied, using the T-car's built in com channel, "BB's in a stable condition and I completely locked down the med bay after scanning it like, six times; nothing's getting in there. And I'm also watching his status on my arm monitor. He'll be fine till we get back."

"Alright, good work." Was all Robin could think to reply; somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew all the assurance in the world wouldn't make leaving a teammate behind any easier, and he didn't like the feeling.

Ever since the Titans left the tower, Robin made sure to have Cyborg keep an eye on the police scanner, checking the chatter about the Wayne Enterprises warehouse break-in. And as it would happen, Cyborg came across some chilling news as they sped towards their target.

"Yo Rob, you gotta hear this man," Cyborg's sickened voice came over the com channel in Robins helmet. He quickly alerted Raven and Starfire as well so that they could also hear the transmission. For a moment, all they heard was static as the police scanner synced with their communicators, then…

"Officer down, I repeat, Officer down!" reverberated what sounded like a young officer's highly distressed voice, sounding no older than in his mid-twenty's. Those two simple words chilled the Titans to their core. Robin growled over the com, shaking his head as his bike continued even faster through the streets, Cyborg close behind him in the T-car.

The ever-sensitive Starfire fought back tears at the disheartening news, while Raven merely grew more intent on reaching their destination. The girls didn't know where they were headed exactly; they were simply following Robin and Cyborg, who had GPS locked on their target.

"How far is this place," Raven questioned in her normal monotone, which was slightly strained with her anger at the situation.

"We're almost there you two, head left at the next intersection," Robin replied coolly, giving the two heroines a heads up.

They closed on the aforementioned intersection within moments. Robin skidded into the center of the junction, pulling a hard left and twisting the throttle as far as was possible, leaving a trail of white smoke behind him as he did a burnout. The T-car drifted through right after him, tires squealing as it did so.

As soon as they all rounded the corner, the warehouse came into view. Soon accompanied with the sight of several police cruisers set up as a barricade across the now closed off street leading to the large building. The entire area was meant for warehouse traffic, such as semi-trucks and other heavy machinery used to haul the goods stored in the large buildings. The whole district was walled off from the rest of the city, though many roads led to its four main entrances, which consisted of large archways that spanned over the roads leading in. The only vehicles cleared for passage into this place belonged to the companies that owned the buildings.

At least twenty of the huge storage facilities were placed within the walled area of downtown Jump, and sitting conveniently in the middle was the Wayne warehouse. Several semi-trucks were parked in front of the huge sliding doors that led into the building, with at least thirty or so figures moving about them, most were loading large crates. But a select group laid down a heavy barrage of gunfire on the JCPD position.

The R-cycle and T-car slid to a halt next to the barricade of cruisers, both of the high tech vehicles drivers quickly making their way from their rides to duck behind the barricade with the police officers already taking cover there. The girls quickly descended through the deadly incoming fire to join them, carefully avoiding the rounds as they did so.

"What's the situation here, sergeant?" Robin asked the closest cop to him. The officer moved a little closer to the Titans. Moving in a crouched walk before leaning his back against the cruiser they currently hid behind, sidearm held firmly in his hand. Robin glanced at the slender gold name-tag on the cop's chest before the man answered, which read 'R. Stevens'.

"Pretty bad, kid," Stevens said with a shake of his head, "We've got two officers down, and five warehouse workers also injured in the crossfire. But that's not the biggest problem. Those robotic freaks have hostages set up so we can't fire back!" The officer said angrily, nodding his head towards the gun wielding Sladebots several yards on the other side of the barricade of cars.

Robin and Cyborg carefully glanced over the cruiser, looking for the hostages the cop had mentioned. Sure enough, lined up in front of the trucks which were being loaded with the warehouses crates stood at least fifteen people that appeared to have guns held to their backs. They were dressed in the garb of warehouse workers, hands held on the top of their heads, all standing directly in the officers line of fire.

A bullet shattered the cruiser's window, causing the two Titans to quickly duck back behind the cover as Starfire let out a startled squeak. "See," The sergeant said in a still angered tone. "The SWAT team is on its way, but they're still a few minutes out. Damn traffic's always heavy this time of day…."

Cyborg put a hand over the human side of his face as he sat back down with his back against the squad car's side. "Man, I hate when there are hostages…" the cybernetic Titan said in an exasperated tone, flinching slightly as more rounds impacted the car.

Robin rubbed his chin thoughtfully, glancing at Raven. "Think you can teleport them here to us, without getting them shot?" He asked the dark Titan.

"I believe so, but it could be tricky." Raven replied evenly, lifting her head just above the rear of the cruiser for a better look at the hostages, and trying not to get her head blown off in the process. She squinted to make out exactly how many there were, and how far away they were positioned. It was a pretty sizable distance to teleport that many people, a good seventy yards from the cruiser barricade. It was going to take some considerable concentration and energy for this one.

"Alright," Raven muttered as she returned to her crouch, quickly forming a plan in her head. A moment later, Raven looked over to her Tamaranean friend, "Starfire, do you think you could give me a distraction, to take some focus off of the hostages?" Raven asked the red-headed alien.

Starfire, who was crouched next to Robin on the Azarathian's left side, lifted her hand out in front of her, enveloping it in the green energy of a starbolt. She smiled and nodded, waiting for Raven's command.

"Alright Starfire, wait for my signal. Everyone else," Raven said, looking at Robin, Cyborg and the police who crouched along the entire barricade, "Get ready to get those people to cover." Everyone nodded in response.

Raven backed away from the safety of the cruisers', rising slowly from her crouch position. She ran her hand through the air, forming a shield in front of herself as she stood in full view of the Sladebots. Bullets mercilessly began pounding against the shield of dark energy, causing her to put a little more focus into keeping it in place. The Goth looked to where the hostages stood, all looking very nervous. She took in a deep breath, closing her eyes and centering herself.

She lifted her hands out in front of her, encasing them in dark energy. "Azarath…Metrion…ZINTHOS!" She recited, sending a wave of dark energy along the ground, quickly speeding towards the line of hostages.

As the energy came within ten yards of her targets, Raven yelled to the Tamaranean, "Now Starfire!"

With a yell of righteous fury, the alien girl leaped from the cover of the police cruiser and into the air, her eyes and hands glowing an ominous green. She drew back her right hand and launched a starbolt straight towards the warehouse. The impact of the energy bolt on the very edge of the Wayne building's roof shook the ground with its power, immediately drawing the attention of every Sladebot, including the hostage takers.

Raven saw her chance and took it, quickly enveloping all fifteen of the civilians in the wave of dark energy. The dark Titan's heart sank as one of the hostages, a woman in a hardhat and dressed like a construction worker, let out a shriek as the darkness surrounded her. The Sladebots standing behind the line of human shields instantly looked back to their charges, forgetting completely about Starfire's distraction.

Time seemed to slow for Raven as the robots leveled their weapons; everyone held their breath, hoping beyond hope that the Azarathian would have enough time. The Sladebots opened fire into the fifteen pillars of dark energy before them, their weapons rounds tearing through the energy like tissue paper.

"NO!" the Titans and officers yelled in unison, eyes widened in horror. The dark energy which had held the hostages dissipated into the air like smoke. For a moment, no one moved. They all simply stared at the now empty spot where the captive civilians had once stood.

Robin was the first to spin around to look at Raven, who was now on her hands and knees several feet behind the barricade, panting from the exertion of moving so many people at once. And much to the Titan leader's relief, on the ground behind her lay the fifteen hostages. They were all unconscious, but unharmed from the look of it.

Everyone else soon came to the same conclusion as Robin and turned around as well, the officers closest to the civilians rushing forward to get them to safety. The teens moved over to Raven and helped her to her feet.

"You okay?" Cyborg asked in a brotherly fashion, letting Raven lean against him for support.

"Yes, I'll be fine. I'm just still a little tired from healing Beast Boy, and this certainly didn't help me in the energy department." Raven replied as she rubbed a hand over her temple, trying to alleviate the headache now pounding through her head. Starfire quickly worsened the pain by grabbing Raven and giving her another lung crushing hug.

"I knew you would succeed friend Raven! You have done most wonderfully!" The alien, completely unaware of her friend's currently pounding head, spun happily in the air. Overjoyed and relieved that the hostages were unharmed.

"That's great Starfire…can't breathe though…" Raven said, straining to talk through her friend's death grip.

Starfire blushed and released Raven, again forgetting her own strength. "My apologies friend," she said with a sheepish grin. "I still seem to forget the fragility of the human bone structure…."

The sound of gunfire brought everyone back to reality, bullets whizzed past the Titans heads, causing them to once again dive for the cover of the cruiser barricade. They watched as the officers helping the workers out of harm's way brought that last of them safely out of the line of fire.

"Open fire!" Sergeant Stevens ordered the rest of the officers along the wall of squad cars. Soon a fierce battle erupted, bullets ripping through the air all around them.

"It's a freaking war-zone here, man!" Cyborg's voice yelled over the din around them. He looked to Robin, who was crouched next to him in deep thought, clearly forming some sort of attack plan. With the threat of civilian casualties out of the way, the Titans could try and end this quickly. After all, a bunch of Sladebots with guns were still just Sladebots…easy enough to handle…right?

* * *

**Rise:**

The explosion that shook the warehouse did not go unnoticed by the Apprentice. He was already aware of the Titans arrival minutes before, and his plan was working well so far; the hostages held both the cops and the teen heroes at bay, giving him time to get the remaining munitions loaded. Sladebots moved at a fevered pace all around him, working as quickly as their robotic bodies were capable of.

He looked to the monitor he had set up to keep an eye on the activity outside of the large storage building, watching as the hostages were enveloped in dark energy. One of the women in the group of captives let out a shriek as the darkness closed around her. The robots that guarded them quickly turned back from the distraction the explosion had caused, and opened fire. Their rounds cut through the dark pillars of energy, quickly revealing empty space where the hostages had once stood.

He laughed dryly at the sight, the metallic quality the mask gave his voice would have been very unnerving, had there been anyone other than the Sladebots in his vicinity. "Took them long enough," He said, placing the helmet he had been holding under his arm securely onto the rest of his exposed head. It coupled with the mask already in place, giving him a devoid and inhuman look, which was how he liked it. Psychological warfare was always a plus to have on your side. If they couldn't read what you were thinking, couldn't see you as anything but an enemy, they wouldn't be prepared for how far you'd push the limits.

"I'll go occupy their time, _you _finish loading the crates. And make it fast." The Apprentice ordered the Sladebot closest to him. He quickly moved towards the open warehouse sliding doors, making his way outside. He took in the scene before him; the cops had finally opened fire, bringing what had been a very one-sided standoff to a now raging firefight.

He didn't see the Titans, _**Must be hiding out **_he thought to himself. _**Cowards…**_ He then noticed a new development occurring. A SWAT team van appeared in the street, moving swiftly down the road towards the escalating conflict. It pulled up behind the police cruiser barricade, unloading a full team out into the blocked off street. They quickly took cover behind the now bullet ridden squad cars and joined in the fierce battle.

Several Sladebots fell to the ground as heavier fire came from the roadblock, ripping their mechanical bodies to shreds. The Apprentice growled and moved towards one of the still standing machines. He ripped the automatic rifle from his hands and shoved the Sladebot to the ground. Bullets pinged off his armor (which was considerably heavier than his predecessors') as he shouldered the weapon, sighting in on the cops' position.

He let off several controlled bursts, each catching one of his targets in the head. Three SWAT members fell to the pavement in bloody heaps, gaining a horrified scream from somewhere on the other side of the barrier. A devilish smile crept across his face as he unloaded the rest of the clip.

* * *

**Conflict:**

Robin quickly set about forming an attack plan. Now that the hostages were safe, he could move at his own discretion. As he worked all the factors of the situation in his head, he could hear the battle raging on around him; officers yelling out to one another, coordinating and refining their lines of fire for the best effect, his team talking anxiously amongst themselves as they waited for his orders.

These things made his job even more hectic, having to think with all those distractions would drive anyone else crazy. But Robin…he _thrived_ off it. He was truly at his best in chaotic situations. It sounded crazy, but it seemed to help him think clearer. He had never known how to explain it. It was something his mentor had praised him for, which was a feat unto itself. Maybe it was the rush of the life and death of it all. Making decisions that could save a life or damn one. Whatever it was, the feeling was comfortable to him.

His planning was momentarily interrupted as a new factor made itself known. The SWAT team that the police sergeant had mentioned suddenly rounded the corner that they themselves had come around several minutes before. The van quickly skidded to a stop a few feet away from the Titans and other officers. Twelve heavily armed SWAT team members unloaded from the rear of the transport vehicle. The team swiftly moved to the barricade, taking cover with everyone else and joining in the fierce fight.

One of the newly arrived officers moved over to the Titan's position, giving a nod to Robin as he settled in alongside them.

"Well, I'm glad to see you're already here," He said, his words slightly muffled by his riot helmet. "I'm Lieutenant Travers." The officer held his hand out to Robin, which the Titan took in a firm handshake before replying.

"We're about to move in," Robin said, nodding his head towards his team. "You and your men need to hang back; we don't want anyone getting caught up in the fray."

Travers sized up the Titans, never having actually seen them in person. He wanted to say something along the lines of 'Like hell we will!' or 'You expect me to take orders from a kid?', but one didn't become a SWAT team leader without having a little common sense. He wasn't about to argue with a superhero, so he only nodded in reply.

"Good," Robin said, turning to his team, a plan now formulated in his mind. "Alright Titans, attack plan-" Another SWAT member crouching a few cruisers down the blockade cut the Boy Wonder off mid sentence.

"Lieutenant Travers! New target in sight!" the officer yelled, pointing towards a new figure that appeared in the midst of the Sladebots. Travers, along with the Titans, rose high enough from behind their cover to see the 'new target'. It was definitely not a machine like the others, while the Sladebots seemed somewhat gangly in the way they held themselves, this new figure carried itself in an almost soldierly fashion, the helmet resting upon its head giving it a startlingly inhuman appearance.

The figure had just ripped a rifle away from one of the Sladebots, shoving the robotic henchmen roughly to the ground as bullets bounced harmlessly off its full body armor. It then shouldered the weapon, aiming directly at them.

Travers could see from its body language that things were about to get a whole lot worse. He tried to yell a word of warning to his fellow team members, but as he opened his mouth to speak, the figure opened fire.

The officer that had first spotted the threat was caught in the head with a controlled spurt of fire, as well as two other officers positioned close to him. Blood, accompanied by a more unpleasant bodily tissue, spattered across the pavement as the three officers collapsed to the ground.

Travers cursed loudly and moved towards his fallen comrades. He knew there was no chance they had survived, but he had to check none the less. Starfire screamed in horror at the sight, which only seemed to intensify the terror of the carnage. Cyborg and Raven stared on in shock, neither of them moving an inch as blood began to pool beneath the prone figures' heads.

Robin quickly snapped into action, knowing he had to get his team moving to keep them focused, he decided a full frontal assault would suffice. "Titans," The Boy wonder said, drawing their attention away from the downed officers'. "We need to end this, now!" He stood, taking his grappling hook from his belt and aiming it at the roof of one of the many warehouses placed all around them.

"Full frontal assault this time team. Girls, get his attention from the air. Cyborg, try to get close to him while Raven and Starfire draw his focus to them. Don't hesitate to take this scumbag down!"

He fired the grapple, which sailed through the air, catching on the rooftop of the building sitting to the teams' right. He sped up the line, quickly gaining the roof and getting to his feet. He put away the grappling hook quickly and withdrew a short silver pole, which he then spun expertly above his head, extending it to its full length. Bo-staff at the ready, the Boy Wonder started off at a blistering pace, rushing along the warehouse rooftop at an impressive speed.

The three Titans still crouched at the barricade took a quick glance at each other, all seeming to have recovered somewhat from the terrible experience. With a nod, the three took off towards the new threat that now stood between them and victory. The girls shot off into the air, Starfire being highly surprised that she was able to fly at all after the distressing sight moments before.

They soared high above the scene; Starfire spotted the murderous new villain that had so violently entered the fight, she summoned a large amount of energy and rapidly fired starbolts at the masked menace. Raven quickly followed up with multiple blasts of dark energy. Their intended target, who looked up in time to see the attacks coming, threw his apparently empty weapon aside and skillfully dodged the Titans' assault. The blasts left large craters where the villain had stood seconds before.

Raven continued her attack by enveloping a nearby lamppost in dark energy and ripping it from the ground. She launched it at the villain who, to her surprise, remained unmoving. As the lamppost reached the masked figure, he snatched it out of the air, doing a full spin and letting it fly right back at her.

She let out a surprised "eep!" trying to dodge the rapidly ascending streetlight, but failing miserably. It struck her with far greater force than when she had thrown it, knocking her out of the air and into one of the police cruisers. The villain seemed to enjoy this, for he barely saw the beam of blue energy as it collided with him squarely in the chest, knocking him back through the air and into the outer cabin of a semi-truck that was still being loaded by Sladebots.

"Boo-yah!" shouted a triumphant Cyborg, who stood with his sonic cannon leveled at his target. "I'd like to see ya throw _that _back at me!" the cybernetic Titan said with a smirk. His celebration was short lived however. The masked villain removed himself from the large indention that now resided in the front of the truck, standing tall once again.

_**Hope Slade didn't catch that**_, he thought, remembering his master's warning about his long-standing over-confidence in battle. Something that had almost gotten him overlooked in the criminal masterminds apprentice search. He quickly shook that thought away, turning his full attention back to the cybernetic teen that attacked him.

The figure cracked his neck, as well as taking a quick stretch of his muscles. "Ah ah, never the same trick twice," He said in a mechanically enhanced voice. He looked Cyborg over for a moment, sizing him up, then rushed forward, quickly closing the forty or so yards between them.

Cyborg aimed his cannon and fired once more, to no avail. The figure dodged it with ease despite his somewhat bulky size. He drew within five yards of the robotic Titan and leaped into the air, drawing his right fist back for a harsh blow. Cyborg watched in what seemed like slow motion, the end of his weapon brought to bear on his target, yet he was too slow to compensate for what happened next. The villain smashed his fist down the barrel of the Titans sonic cannon, completely destroying his mechanical appendage and sending shrapnel flying off in all directions.

Cyborg cried out in pain as he fell roughly to the ground, only a sparking stump remaining of his formally functioning arm. The villain laughed callously as he examined the multiple colored wires clenched in his balled fist. "Oops" he said looking down at the wounded Titan.

Cyborg narrowed his human eye as he stared venomously back at his attacker. "If you think that's funny," He spoke through gritted teeth, "Then you're gonna get a kick outta this!" The half machine quickly elevated his leg so that it faced the villain. Before the masked man could figure out what the teen meant, a rocket propelled foot slammed into his face, knocking him several feet through the air and landing him harshly on his back.

He grunted from the force of the impact, finding it quit difficult to regain he stance as fast as before. He let out an agitated growl and moved towards the still downed Cyborg, leaving him completely unprepared for the sudden explosion that connected with his back. The villain flew forward, skidding past Cyborg across the pavement before coming to a stop.

"You've done enough damage today, Apprentice," Robin yelled as he landed next to his robotic friend, having jumped from the rooftops around them.

"Yes, you have done enough evil deeds for this day!" Starfire added angrily through clenched teeth, her eyes glowing a dangerous green as she supported her injured Gothic friend. The girls stood on the other side of the Apprentice, effectively surrounding him as Robin helped Cyborg up, reattaching his foot for him.

The villain rose to his feet slowly, his arm holding his side as he did so.

"Ha! Took you long enough," he dusted himself off with his other hand as he spoke. "I thought you would have figured it out sooner, even without the Sladebots."

"It isn't that much of a mystery. Whenever Slade shows his face, another pathetic lackey like you isn't far behind." Robin shot back coldly as he moved to a better position of attack, Bo-staff at the ready.

"Humph. You seem to forget, you were once in the same position as I am. Besides, it really wasn't _that _bad, was it?" He asked with a dry laugh, moving slowly in the direction of the Wayne warehouse and his awaiting trucks once more. "Slade tells me you enjoyed it quite a bit, actually."

"You really shouldn't believe everything a madman tells you," Robin replied calmly, slowly moving to intercept the villain's path. "They tend to embellish things like that…He did mention the fact that he forced me to work for him, right?"

The Apprentice chuckled at this, shaking his head as he did so. "Sure, if you want to put that spin on it, go with that," The kick to the face Cyborg had delivered had left a large crack in the villains mask, revealing one of his steely blue eyes hidden beneath.

He scanned the Titans that surrounded him, looking for any weaknesses to exploit. Even in their weakened state, they didn't let down their guard for even a second. He had to think fast. He noted his surroundings quickly; a battle rifle lay in front of him amongst the rubble strewn along the street, though it wouldn't do much good against the Titans. Sure, he had strength, but so did the red-head. Even if he tried, he wouldn't be able to just focus on one; he'd have to take them all.

_**Not a smart engagement, **_he thought to himself.

Then, as if on cue, four of the remaining SWAT members leaped over the barricade to help contain the masked killer. In doing this however, they foolishly left themselves vulnerable without their cover. Now those guys, he could handle. He looked back to Robin for an instant, the two of them making eye contact. Robin's eyes widened at the look the villain held, even with only the one visible eye, it seemed to portray the devilish smirk that played across the Apprentice's face.

After that, it all seemed to go by so quickly; the villain swiftly hooked his foot beneath the gun, in one fluid motion he flicking it into the air high enough to grab it. He leveled it at the approaching officers, giving Robin only seconds to react. The Boy Wonder shouted to Raven, but she was already way ahead of him. The sorceress hastily formed a barrier of dark energy in front of the SWAT personal, just as the Apprentice opened fire. The rounds impacted the shield, which held strong despite its rushed creation.

The villain moved as he fired, using the quick distraction to break away from the Titans that blocked his retreat. He exhausted the weapons ammo and threw it aside, making a break for it. This however did not go unnoticed by Robin who, after being assured of the officers' safety, quickly took off after him.

The injured criminal made pretty good time in his current state, making it hard for the Boy Wonder to keep up with him. Raven, who had now fully recovered from the hard impact she had taken earlier, floated alongside her leader, leaving Cyborg and Starfire to hold the roadblock.

Robin hurled an explosive disk at the villain, which he very narrowly avoided, the fight clearly taking its toll on him. Once the Apprentice reached the large trucks, he spun around to face his pursuers, slightly out of breath. "Well Titans, I'd love to stay, but my mission here is done. You're definitely as tough as I've been told. A shame it wasn't enough today," The criminal said with a triumphant tone in his mechanically enhanced voice.

Robin spun his Bo-staff at his side before leveling it at his enemy, taking an aggressive stance, Raven landing softly and doing the same. "And just how do you plan on getting through us?" the Boy wonder asked coolly, narrowing his eyes behind his trademark mask.

"Well, you know what they say in the scouts Robin, _always_ be prepared…" He pointed to the warehouse's roof, which rose up several feet behind him, and which now held some heavily armed Sladebots, loaded down with rocket launchers and other explosive weapons. They aimed their RPGs towards the two Titans, who quickly made a mad dash out of the way.

Missiles streaked towards the heroes, narrowly missing them before impacting the pavement. Robin picked himself up, looking over at Raven who was a bit dazed from the explosions. He then noticed the Sladebots had reloaded their weapons, and now had them trained on the police blockade. There was no way he stop them in time, and he now knew exactly what the Apprentice's plan of escape was.

"Starfire, Cyborg! Get everyone out of there!" He yelled to his other teammates who were still near the barricade, preparing for anything that may come their way. They quickly looked from their leader to the officers crowded behind them.

Travers, who had heard Robins warning, was the first to take action. "You heard the man! Everyone get to cover!" Starfire and Cyborg along with the Lieutenant rapidly corralled the other cops and everyone made a run for it, just as a new volley of missiles streaked towards them. The already beaten and battered patrol cars were blasted away, throwing them high into the air, scattering large chunks of debris everywhere and effectively destroying the roadblock.

Before Robin and Raven could do anything to stop the now fully loaded trucks from making their escape, several Sladebots opened fire on them, filling the air around them with hot lead. Raven covered herself and Robin in a shield of dark energy before any rounds reached them, and the two were forced to retreat.

"Let's go!" the Apprentice shouted to the drivers of the trucks, "get us out of here!" The semi's rolled out, moving along the now cleared road, passing by what was left of the police cruisers and the officers scattered throughout the street, many injured in the explosion moments earlier. Bullets pinged off the trucks as some of the police fired, trying to slow them down but failing.

Robin and Raven rushed over to their friends, unable to locate the two initially, but soon finding them on the ground a few yards behind where the barricade had once stood. The trucks were already to the end of the street and now started entering the intersection the Titans had gone through awhile before.

Robin watched as they rounded the corner and disappeared into the city. He looked to where his R-cycle had been parked, only to see it completely destroyed, with a heavily damaged T-car sitting next to it. The explosion had apparently done a bit more than just destroyed the roadblock. He glanced at his teammates briefly before rushing off down the debris strewn street, intent on following the semis, even if it meant doing it on foot.

"Yo Rob, wait up!" The now one-armed Cyborg called after him, quickly trying to catch up with his leader. The girls exchanged a look, and then took off to join their friends as well. They all reached the corner, rounding it hastily, and came to a bewildering discovery.

"What the hell…?" Cyborg muttered more to himself than anyone else. They saw absolutely…nothing. The trucks were nowhere to be seen, and at their weight and speed, they shouldn't have made it completely out of sight that quickly.

"How is this possible?" Starfire asked in a puzzled tone, she looked over to the Boy Wonder, knowing he would have to answer. "Robin, where have they gone?" Robin remained silent; he only stood there, staring down the crowded street as civilians and vehicles moved about as though nothing had happened.

He balled his fists at his sides in silent anger, knowing he had now lost his only lead on Slade made him furious, and the sight of the death and destruction this little encounter had caused made it all the worse. He bowed his head and muttered something under his breath that the others couldn't hear, though they could use their imaginations well enough.

"Damn it…"

* * *

**Numb:**

The emptiness was indescribable; he could feel nothing as he waited in his own personal purgatory, waiting for something, anything, to happen. But nothing came, only the deafening silence that surrounded him. This was not like the darkness he had been in before. This abyss seemed far more…dire. The feeling the place gave him was far from pleasant, and he didn't know why. There was nothing to see, nothing to be…afraid of. Yet, he found himself wondering if this plan was all it was cracked up to be.

_**What if he was wrong? What if this won't help me get back at all!? **_The green Titan's thoughts were growing more anxious as he seemingly drifted through the darkness. He had never pegged himself as claustrophobic, but he was definitely feeling caged at the moment.

_**Maybe he can get me outta here. Maybe he can hear me! **_Deciding he might as well try, Beast Boy called out to the primal side, but quickly realized that no words were escaping him. As a matter of fact, he couldn't even feel his face moving at all. He couldn't feel anything, not an arm, not a leg…Nothing. At least before he could feel his body (though he knew it wasn't real), even if he couldn't see it, but all he had know, were his thoughts.

The changeling tried to calm his mind, in hopes of not driving himself insane for however long he'd be in this mess. _**Man, I'd take being completely out of it over this any day…**_ He thought despairingly. He found himself sorely missing the little things now. The things that you never think you'd miss if they were taken away; watching the sunrise on the rare mornings he actually found himself up early enough. The daily battles with Cyborg over why tofu is infinitely better than meat in every way. Raven's sarcastic remarks and nearly endless putdowns, which he knew she really didn't mean (Most of the time). Starfire and her constantly bubbly disposition, which for those who are NOT morning people (or people persons), can really get on ones nerves. Beast Boy even found himself missing Robin and his uptight approach to the superhero life.

He knew it was pathetic to be feeling this way after what seemed like only a short time away from it all, but he did nonetheless. He wasn't entirely sure how long it had been, or if time was somehow different in his current state, but it felt as though it had only been a couple of days at the most since this all began.

He wondered if the rest of the team was still okay, or if something like this had befallen them as well. _**No, if they did find me, then they must know who did it by now, and knowing Robin, hey would have them all just as uptight and paranoid as he is…though it looks like he was right to be like that after all… **_Beast Boy suddenly found himself wishing he had been more vigilant, maybe if he was, he wouldn't be in his current state. But how could he have known something like this would happen? And in his own home, their home! Nothing like this had ever happened, and there was no reason to think it would, not _in_ the tower…Right?

_**Alright BB, just forget all that other stuff. Focus on healing, maybe that'll make- **_he lost his train of thought as a sharp, searing pain abruptly gripped him. He wasn't sure what he should be more concerned about at the moment, the pain, or the sudden re-acquaintance with his body. He gritted his teeth in a vain attempt to stave off the pain. It felt so strange to him. It was the same agonizing sensation he had felt when he was attacked, and yet he still felt the odd detachment he had been feeling the entire time he had been in his mind.

As the green Titan tried his best to overcome the waves of anguish rolling over his body, he gradually became aware of strange sounds all around him. His head pounded as the rush of noise filled his extremely sensitive ears, reminding him of just how long it had been since he had really heard anything. It all sounded like it was amplified; he could hear something dripping, though not as a faucet would, this sounded evenly spaced out, almost as though it had a purpose. A far louder noise met him next, in the form of a shrill, rhythmic beeping.

His sense of smell was also taking a good thrashing. The smell of disinfectant and other sterilization materials engulfed him, coupling with the din to completely disorient him. Soon though, it all came together for him as a blinding light met his eyes, the realization hitting him like a ton of bricks…

He was waking up.

* * *

**(A/N) ****Cliff-hanger! Eh, not much of one I guess...but still! Alright, I think it's only fair you all know that I don't have a bunch of chapters already roughed out, because I don't. I tend to write as I go, even though I do have a few (hopefully) good ideas to put in, it might be awhile between updates, but I will try and make them as often as possible.**

**With the opening scene, I figured there were a TON of fics about going into Raven's mind, and I haven't seen many about what it's like in Beast Boy's. So that was what I imagine it would look like, hope you all found it somewhat interesting.  
**

******Also, the first three chapters have finally been beta read, so keep an eye open for the revised versions of the first three chapters. There are some minor changes and a few new things, so I think it may warrant a second look.  
**

******Okay, thanks for reading my rambling author's notes. Chapter five is in progress and should be ready in a month. Better give myself time on that, considering how long this one took. And one very last thing, if anyone can guess the name of the band I borrowed my section titles from, you'll get a shout out next chapter!**

******Ha, see what I did there...its a ploy...to get reviews...nothing? Really? Fine, be that way...****Also, I rather enjoyed matching the sections up with a title, so I may be sticking with that.  
**

******P.S. Don't forget to vote on my profile poll, what you vote on will be a major part of this story's future. The poll is for who should be Beast Boy's replacement, so choose wisely ^^ **

*******edit* I should probably also mention that until I get a good enough vote count, I'm not going to be able to finish chapter 6, because whoever I end up putting in as Beast Boy's replacement will show up in that chapter. So really, every vote on my profile poll counts. **

******This however holds no bearing on chapter five. So you have time, people! If I don't get very many votes, I'll just do what I probably should just do anyway, and make the choice myself. But who wants that?  
**

******(This public service announcement was brought to you by new and improved _Zinthos: _for when **Azarath and Metrion just aren't enough...) 

**Alright, it's _way_ too late for me to be making jokes...Or too early, depending on who you ask :p**

******Until next time everyone,**

******~DeathProofHero**


	5. The Mistake

**(A/N) Hello everyone! DeathProof here again, bringing you chapter five of Shock and Awe. I really enjoyed writing this chapter, so I hope you enjoy reading it just as much ^^ Once again, the awesome and crazy talented Jadee did the beta reading for this chapter, so big thanks and a round of applause** **out to her. **

**Now, before I forget, Moving Mountains guessed right on last chapters question, the song titles used as the scene separators were from the band Disturbed, so bravo to ya, MM ^_^ Now, enough of my ramblings, on with chapter five! Enjoy...**

**DISCLAIMER:****I do NOT own the Teen Titans or anything/anyone else that may appear in this story. Song titles were borrowed for this chapters section titles which I also do NOT own.**

**-------------  
**

**Chapter Five: The Mistake  
**

**Respite:**

"Well, that was horrific," Raven said dryly as the four battered teens entered the tower's common room. She moved into the kitchen to start her tea kettle on the stove, leaning against the countertop as she waited.

"No kidding," Cyborg replied as he sat at one of the computer consoles against the wall opposite the kitchen. He began examining his shattered arm more carefully as he continued, "I don't think I've ever missed Beast Boy more. We really could have used the grass stain's help out there."

"Not that it would have done much good against…whoever that was," Raven spoke once more, her eyes now closed as she began to relax from the tense situation they had been in a few hours before.

After the battle had ended, the Titans had remained at the scene, per Robin's request, to look for any leads on where the trucks might have come from, or where they were headed. They had also assisted the police in cleaning up the destruction left in the new Apprentice's wake, Starfire and Raven both staying clear of the bodies as they helped. It was a shock to the teens' systems to be that close to death. They were used to the brutality and bloodiness of combat, especially when firearms were involved, but never had they seen their allies mowed down right in front of their eyes.

After several hours of searching the entire area of the battleground, as well as every inch of the warehouse, Robin inevitably came up with nothing, which only worsened his highly agitated mood. Now, as the others went about their business in the common room, he stood in the entranceway, still at the top of the steps leading down into the area. He barely heard Starfire speak as he stared straight ahead, unblinking as his mind worked every possible detail of the previous few hours.

"But Raven, we know who the attacker is; he is Slade's new Apprentice," The alien said as she rummaged through the kitchen cupboards, taking it upon herself to prepare dinner for her friends. It was nearing eight p.m. now; most of the day had been spent at the crime scene.

"No Starfire, I mean whoever the Apprentice _is_," the Azarathian clarified as she poured the water from her now boiling kettle into her favorite mug. She took in the pleasing aroma of the herbal tea as the steam drifted lazily up to her face. She released a barely audible sigh of contentment at the comfort it brought.

"Oh, yes. I see what you mean," Starfire replied, her voice slightly muffled as her upper body disappeared into one of the cupboards. The Tamaranean's efforts to locate the strange ingredients needed for her planned meal were becoming rather comical. She was growing ever nearer to the legendary abyss that was the back of Titans Tower's cupboards. Many a stray can of food or stale bag of chips lay in the darkness beyond normal reach, forgotten after years of restocking and lack of attention (mostly thanks to Beast Boy). Heaven help them if she ever came across one of those lost artifacts. But we digress…

"I have been wondering the very same thing," The alien princess said after a thoughtful pause, removing herself from the cabinet, arms laden with various items that turned one's stomach at the mere thought of joining said products together. "Who could he be? Someone we have faced before? A student of the H.I.V.E. Academy perhaps?" Starfire offered.

"Perhaps. He didn't seem to have the same energy as someone we've faced before. But then again, he wasn't exactly easy to read with everything that was going on around us back there." Raven said from her new position on the common room's couch, sipping her tea slowly.

"Y'all are forgetting the possibility that it wasn't a 'he'. Whoever the person is, they had a voice modifier. It could just sound like a dude." Cyborg said as he tinkered with the remains of his robotic arm.

Raven scoffed at the idea, "I doubt a girl would be built like that, and frankly, I'd be a little disturbed if it that was true." She said, glancing over to her cybernetic teammate with a quirked eyebrow.

"Built huh? Checking out the opposition, eh Rae?" Cyborg said with a chuckle, smirking at the death glare he was now receiving.

"No, idiot, you know what I meant. Besides, do you really think it best to be making stupid jokes at a time like this?" the dark Titan asked in a very serious tone which caused Cyborg to frown. "I mean, Beast Boy's badly hurt and in a coma, three people were killed today, and now a madman has several thousand high-tech rifles at his disposal. Not exactly Monty Python material." She once again quirked an eyebrow at the older Titan, sipping her tea as she watched him choose his next words carefully.

"Alright, I'll admit that making a joke about you being hot for a homicidal maniac was in bad taste," the metal man replied, raising his one good hand in defense, "but don't criticize the way I cope, OK? You have your tea and mediation, Starfire has her god-awful cooking... er, sorry, Star, BB has his stupid jokes and incessant need to make you laugh, I have my _good _jokes and the T-car, and Robin…hey, where is Robin?" Cyborg asked as he noticed the Boy Wonder's absence from the room.

"He left a few minutes ago," Raven answered, glancing to where the team's leader had stood a little while before. Starfire quickly became concerned, as was the case most of the time that any of them acted strangely, and especially when her "boyfriend" involved.

"Do you think Robin is alright? Perhaps I should go and check on him…" The orange-skinned girl said as she temporarily set the strange collection of ingredients aside.

"Don't worry about it, Star," The cybernetic Titan said, putting his hand up to stop her, "I have to go put a new arm together and check on Beast Boy anyway. I'll see where Rob went." With that, Cyborg stood and made his way out of the room and into the halls beyond.

"Very well…" Starfire murmured to herself before returning to her...um, cooking.

Raven watched as the oldest of the teens exited through the main doors, leaving only herself and the alien princess in the room. She glanced at the large clock hung high on the wall closest to the kitchen, noting the late hour. She stood from her seat and moved over to the sink, placing her empty teacup among the other dirty dishes before turning to address her best friend.

"I think I'll go see if I can't try healing Beast Boy a bit more, so I'm afraid I'll have to pass on dinner," the sorceress said, warily eyeing the already nauseating concoction taking up most of the countertop.

"That is alright, Raven, but have you not already done the healing of friend Beast Boy today? And did Robin not warn you to save your energy?" Starfire asked as she looked to her dark friend.

"I'll be fine Starfire. It won't take too much out of me, and I'd rather get Beast Boy healed up as quickly as possible than have to deal with a replacement. I'm sure we're going to end up with someone that doesn't complement the team at all." Raven said, casually crossing her arms over her chest. "All we'd need around here is Speedy to remind us just how freakishly similar he and Robin are, or Kid Flash vibrating himself into our rooms because of his _curious_ nature." Her eyebrow twitched at the possibilities of who their temporary teammate might be. The other Titans were nice enough, but Raven wasn't very fond of changes, even temporary ones.

"I am sure whoever it is that does the filling in for friend Beast Boy will fit just fine with the rest of us. Yet I understand the unwillingness to consider fighting crime without our friend. It shall not be for long though, Raven; he will be back with us soon enough." The alien girl smiled at Raven with her well-known infectious grin. This, of course, had no effect on Raven, but after many years of dealing with it, she did appreciate the attempt.

"I know Starfire," The Azarathian stated as she turned to head out the common room doors, pulling her hood over her head as she went. "I'll be back later."

Starfire watched as her friend departed into the hall beyond the doorway, leaving her to her cooking. She sighed, her smile dissipating slightly as she thought of the recent events. Tamaraneans were no strangers to pain and death, but she had become accustom to the battles on earth. She had even become accustomed to the simple villains who, while still tiresome, were predictable and more pathetic and quirky than genuinely fearsome. Simple things like recognition or money drove most, while power and the need for dominance drove others. Whichever the case may be, the motivations of Jump City's regular villains were usually far easier to read.

Her thoughts soon turned to a very unpleasant subject: Slade. No matter how hard she tried, she could not find what drove him the most. There were smaller things that attracted him to his criminal ways, but he seemed strangely obsessed with her and her friends. However, it was clear that Robin held most of villain's attention. But the most disquieting aspect of the dynamic between Robin and Slade was their mutual obsession with each other.

She could understand Robin's reasons for his fixation on stopping Slade; he only wanted to protect his team and the city from him, to stop him from destroying what he held dear. However, the alien princess was not as naïve as many believed her to be, she knew there was something more that urged them both in their conflict. It was something that she felt might never be explained by anyone, much less by her. She only hoped someday, she would be able to understand Robin more. She knew what she felt for him, but wondered if he would ever truly be hers, or forever dedicated to the job.

"Oh…these thoughts are far too negative for a time like this," she stated quietly to herself. The Tamaranean closed her eyes, racking her brain for positive things to focus on.

She sighed as she came up with nothing. She idly tapped her fingernails against the kitchen counter top, her cooking temporarily forgotten. As she stared off into space, she suddenly felt something brush against her leg; she quickly looked down at the offending object. After realizing what, or rather _who_ it was, her face lit up once more with her trademark smile.

"Silkie," She said happily, as she scooped the larval pet into her arms, tickling him as she did so. "My little bumgorf, you always know when I need the cheering up," the creature cooed in reply as she cradled him.

"If only life could be as simple as the love of a pet," Starfire said thoughtfully. "Now, let us see if we cannot prepare a proper meal for-" An earsplitting cry of pain rang throughout the entire tower, cutting her speech short. She jumped several feet into the air from the mere fright of the sudden yell. Quickly setting her equally frightened pet aside, Starfire rushed out of the common room to find the cause of the trouble.

She was no more than two feet through the doors when her communicator sounded. She opened the screen and came to a momentary stop as Raven's face came onto the screen.

"Titans, get to the med bay quickly!" The empath's voice was even, though the shock on her face betrayed her tone.

"Friend Raven, what has happened?" Starfire asked as she flew towards the med bay.

"It's Beast Boy," Raven said with slight hesitation, "h-he's awake…"

**Resolve: **

Robin entered the darkened med bay, slowing his pace as he approached the bed holding his wounded teammate. The room was silent, save the beeping of Beast Boy's heart monitor and the Boy Wonder's softly echoing footfalls. He arrived at the injured Titan's bedside, placing his hands on the raised safety-rail that ran along both sides of the bed; he squeezed the rail absentmindedly as he stared at the changeling, a deep scowl now etched onto his face as he watched the boy's chest slowly rise and fall as he slept.

He had not remembered leaving the common room, and only realized he was in front of the med bay doors when he had finally pried himself away from his thoughts. It was just too frustrating, all the turmoil and destruction Slade left in his wake, and yet there were no leads, no clues for the master detective to follow. Robin truly hated losing, and the only thing he hated more…was the villain winning.

"I really let you down this time, didn't I?" He asked the sleeping green form, knowing he most likely couldn't hear. "I know you and I haven't always gotten along, personality wise…but I do consider you a good friend." He spoke quietly despite his foul mood, absently running a hand through his spiked hair.

Robin sighed, having come to only one conclusion during his space-out session. He was going to have to look for Slade himself. He had no leads to go off of, but he had a pretty good idea where to start. He remembered bitterly the effects of the powder on the mask that his team had confiscated from Slade. After the wild goose chase that had ensued, which had almost killed him, he had sworn to himself that he would never fall for anything like that again. That was a promise he intended to keep.

"We _will _stop him," Robin said, voicing his thoughts towards the comatose teen in front of him. "And who knows…maybe you'll be there with us when we do."

He patted Beast Boy's hand which lay at the changeling's side before leaving his friend to his recovery. He moved out through the med bay and made his way down the hall, planning his next move as he went. He paused outside the common room doors as he heard a conversation.

"Do you think Robin is alright? Perhaps I should go and check on him…" He heard Starfire ask the others. Cyborg spoke next, telling her he would look in on their leader for her. Robin left at that, moving at a quicker pace towards his room, only to stop as he remembered that his living quarters had recently become a gaping hole in the side of the Tower.

He rerouted himself to his crime lab, which also held what he needed. He entered the darkened room and moved to the shelves that hadn't been smashed during his encounter with the Sladebot. He picked up a few discs and birdarangs and placed them in his belt. He then opened a drawer in his desk, grabbed a solitary key from within, and palmed it before closing the compartment once more. He did a double check of his equipment before moving out of the lab and into the hall, making sure Cyborg wasn't coming for his promised check in. He saw no one in either direction and deemed it safe to leave. He made it down the corridor to the tower's elevator quickly, and pressed the button for the garage.

Exiting the elevator, he walked into the garage and flipped the lights on as he passed the switch. The lights were momentarily dim and flickered. Soon the room flooded with light, which illuminated the heavily damaged T-car that rested in the center of the large, concrete-floored room. Shortly before, Cyborg had just barely managed to get them home in that unlucky vehicle.

Robin's eyes narrowed behind his mask as he passed the heap of metal. Cyborg would have to put a good couple weeks of work into it before it would be worthy of being the cybernetic Titan's 'baby' once more. The R-cycle however, had not been so fortunate. They had only been able to find a few pieces of the formally awesome machine, much to Robin's frustration. Cyborg had promised to build another one for him as soon as things with Slade were resolved, and only after the T-car got its needed attention, of course.

He walked towards the rear of the garage, coming to a stop in front of a large object which was covered with sheet, stained here and there with greasy oil marks. He smirked as he pulled the cover off, revealing a well maintained, though albeit far less high-tech motorcycle. It was a racing model from the late nineties, with the title '_Superhawk' _adorning its side. Robin had found it a couple of years before, abandoned in one of the many dark alleyways of Jump, in very poor condition.

He and Cyborg had brought the bike back to the tower, after checking for any registration or other identifying features to show it as missing or stolen. It had been completely ownerless, and had thus been given to the Titans. Robin had spent many hours of his seldom attained free time restoring the racer, with only minimal help from the Titan's resident gear-head. Robin may not be as well versed in the ways of muscle cars as his cybernetic teammate, but if the Boy Wonder knew anything, he knew bikes.

He kept it for the occasional joyride, when a good training session just didn't cut it to relieve the stress of his day to day life. After all, being team leader wasn't exactly a barrel of laughs. But right now, this bike was the best mode of transportation available. Robin mounted the cycle, straddling it as he slipped his helmet on.

He reached for the communicator on his utility belt and tentatively switched it off, temporarily disabling its tracking device as well. He certainly did not want any distractions during his self-appointed mission. He felt he needed to do this himself. Maybe the others wouldn't understand, certainly Starfire wouldn't, but it was something he had to do. Slade had always been his problem, his cross to bear, and that's just what he planned to deal with that evening.

He placed the key in the ignition and started the bike, revving it a few times as the garage door opened before him.

"Alright," he mumbled to himself, "here goes…"

The racer did a burnout briefly before accelerating forward through the garage and into the now darkened evening outside the tower. He raced towards the tunnel connecting Titans' Island with Jump City, all the while a nagging feeling in the back of his mind telling him he shouldn't have switched off his com. Against his better judgment, he ignored it and remained focused on his destination.

He exited the tunnel on the city side, quickly disappearing into the evening traffic.

**Awaken:**

Raven departed through the common room doors, leaving Starfire to her thoughts. She moved down the hallway, her own mind swimming with thoughts and questions. However, she did have her wits about her enough to notice Cyborg's bedroom door, which was wide open, giving her a clear view into her fellow Titan's room. She paused in the entrance way, leaning against the doorframe as she watched Cyborg working on what she guessed was his replacement arm.

"What's up Rae?" The cybernetic teen asked without turning to look at her.

Raven was slightly amused by his awareness, considering she was the one who usually sensed people before ever seeing them. She pushed the thought aside as she replied.

"Have you checked on Beast Boy yet?" she asked in her usual monotone.

"Not yet, but I've got one of my PCs linked with his heart monitor and vitals. It's all reading fine," he answered casually, still tinkering with the half finished mechanical arm resting on his work table, "I just checked the crime lab for Robin, but he wasn't there. I'm sure he's off brooding or something. He always gets like that when we fail something Slade related."

He finally turned to face her as he continued, "I was about to go and check on BB in person though. I'm just trying to get this thing finished. Can't say I'm a fan of my spare arm," he said with a chuckle as he flexed the skinny, almost skeletal temporary arm he was using to help speed up the repairs. "It really takes away from my cool," He gave his best impression of one of Beast Boy's corny smiles, which certainly didn't suit the big man. Raven rolled her eyes before speaking once more.

"Why don't you keep working, I'll go check on Beast Boy for you. I was kind of headed there anyway." She offered as she glanced at the aforementioned computer screen that held the changeling's vitals.

"Well, that would definitely help. As soon as I'm finished I'll go check his IV's and take a look at his wound dressings. Thanks, Rae," He turned back to his work after giving her an appreciative smile.

"No problem." She replied as she turned back to the hallway and left his room. She came to the med bay entrance and walked through. As she drew closer to the only occupied bed in the room, she felt something strange emanating from its occupant. She couldn't quit put her finger on it, but something was certainly different. She stepped up next to the bed, looking Beast Boy over. His heart rate was faster than it had been earlier, and his eyes were closed tightly.

Suddenly she could sense strong pain radiating from him. The almost unbearable waves washing over her as her empathy took in the powerful sensation. She put her hand to her head as it began to ache dully, stepping back slightly as she did so. She was about to call for Cyborg, but stopped as the pain intensified even further. Raven looked to the changeling's prone form, and was startled as his eyes shot open. He seemed to freeze, if for only a moment, before his body lurched against the bed, his head sinking deeply into his pillow as he cried out in anguish.

Raven covered her ears as his voice carried throughout the tower. She moved forward as he gritted his teeth, quelling the cry and replacing it with painful grunts.

"R-Raven," he croaked through the pain, finally realizing she was near him.

She quickly took out her communicator and hailed the rest of the Titans. Setting the com aside, she moved closer to him once more, the pain had almost all but subsided as she took his hand. She focused her energy, and soon, the rest of the pain melted away.

An almost contented sigh escaped him as he smiled. He looked at the neutral expression her face held, it was the same as usual, but he could still see the concern in her eyes.

"Wow, Rae," he said with a weak chuckle, "You're way better than the pain killers" he gestured to the IV's, and cringed as he moved his arm. His whole body was extremely sore, even after Raven's help, and the apparently ineffective pain killers. Starfire and Cyborg burst into the med bay, and immediately rushed over to their friends.

"What's going on in here?!" Cyborg asked in a panicked, not to mention concerned, tone. The redheaded girl beside him appeared just as worried as she looked Raven and Beast Boy over.

"Yes, why was there the terrible screaming?" She asked in an equally panicked voice.

"It's fine, it was just a little more pain than I could handle. Raven took care of it for me though..." Beast Boy said tiredly, tying to ease his friends worry. At his words, the Tamaranean seemed to finally realize her green friend was indeed awake.

"Beast Boy!" Starfire cried out happily as she wrapped him up in a hug, making sure not to squeeze him to hard. "I am most joyful that you are alright!" the alien said with a wide smile on her face, finally having something to smile for.

"Thanks Star, the not crushing me thing was nice too." She blushed slightly as Beast Boy returned her smile weakly, the pain in his lower back resuming once more. He repositioned himself on the bed as the now very relieved Cyborg mussed the changeling's hair, laughing as he did so.

"You really had us worried there, ya little grass stain. It's not every day someone gets stabbed in the back three times and lives to talk about it." Beast Boy eyes widened at Cyborg's statement.

"Dude…three times?" The green teen shook his head as he stared at the ceiling of the med bay. After a moment of silence, Beast Boy looked back at his cybernetic friend, remembering something he had just seen.

"Uh, what happened to your arm, man?" he asked as he nodded his head at the skeletal appendage.

"Well…long story. I'll tell ya later, but right now I need to check something." Cyborg began inspecting the monitors near Beast Boy's bed. "You know, I calculated you being down a month at the least. While I'm really glad you are, by all accounts, you shouldn't be awake right now." Cyborg continued looking over the medical equipment as he spoke. "I mean, you were in a _coma_. Ya don't just all the sudden wake up form one of those…well, this quickly at least."

"Yeah, I kinda had some help with that…from this dude in my head." Beast boy saw the blank stares on his friend's faces, and decided he should probably clarify his statement. He turned to face Cyborg as he spoke.

"Okay man, you remember when we messed with Raven's freaky mirror thingy?" he asked the half metal teen.

"You mean when YOU messed with Raven's freaky mirror thing? Yeah, I remember getting sucked into that mess…literally!" Cyborg replied. He crossed his arms over his chest as a smirk played across his face.

"It is not a '_freaky mirror_' idiots'. It's a _portal _into my mind!" Raven cut in, sounding very agitated at the miss-labeling of the fabled entrance to 'Nevermore'. The boys both flinched, much as they did the first time she had informed them of that information.

"Err…uh, sorry Raven. Portal is what I _meant_ to say. Really," he shot her as goofy a grin as he could manage in his current state, which seemed to have the desired effect. Though really, she could hardly stay mad at him. Even she had her limits when it came to pummeling him, and being in the middle of a stabbing recovery was one of them. She just rolled her eyes and gestured for him to continue.

"I think I know what you're gettin' at BB. You sayin there's a bunch Beast Boys running around in there?" Cyborg asked, tapping the changeling's forehead with his finger before Beast Boy could explain further.

"Oh god, there's a thought," Raven said sarcastically form her position on the right side of Beast Boy's bed.

"Um…friends," Starfire finally spoke, after having stood in silence as her friends discussed a topic she wasn't very familiar with. She had noticed something as she waited for a topic she could chime in on. However, her words went unnoticed for the moment.

"And what's that supposed to mean, Raven?" Beast Boy asked rather defensively as he shifted his body so that he was sitting up in the medical bed.

"Actually, that was pretty funny," Cyborg said with a chuckle, he put his hand up to high five Raven, she stared at him with her expressionless face for a moment before dispassionately returning the gesture.

"Friends…"

"Well for your information, O Great and Sarcastic Dark One, there was only one of me in there," Beast Boy said, sticking his tongue out at the young sorceress.

"Oh very mature, Beast Boy, and I figured as much. You're mind doesn't work the same as mine, and not just because of the obvious differences in actual brain activity." The Azarathian shot back with an ever so slight smirk.

"Ooh, nice one," Cyborg added.

"Oh, so that's how it's gonna-"

"…FRIENDS!"

The others jumped, even Raven, at the sudden yell from the normally pleasant alien princess. They all stared wide-eyed at Starfire, frozen in their defensive positions.

"Um…thank you," She started, pleased that she had all their attention, "Where is Robin? Why has he not joined us in the enjoyment of friend Beast Boy's return to the waking world?"

The others were all shocked that they hadn't noticed; surely he had heard the call over the T-com, and he would not have blown something like this off. Cyborg lifted his arm to use his built in communicator, and sighed as he remembered he the unrepaired arm back in his workshop.

"Rae, give me your communicator real quick."

She handed it over, and after a moment of fiddling with the device, they all saw a scowl come over his face.

"What is it Cy?" Beast Boy asked as he gingerly sat up in his temporary bed.

"His communicator's off," He clicked a few more buttons as he spoke, "And the tracker with it."

"But, Robin never turns his communicator off, and always stresses the importance of always keeping ours on, no matter the situation," Starfire said, now becoming quite concerned with her beau's unexplained absence.

"Starfire is right, something must be wrong. Robin would never do anything like that unless there was a problem," Raven added as she crossed her arms in front of her.

"Hold on," Cyborg said as he stared off into space. His cybernetic red eye grew brighter for a moment before he spoke again, "He's not in the tower, there's only four heat signatures showing up and they're all in here."

"Slade," Raven said darkly, they all turned their attention to her, their eyes narrowing at the mention of his name. Beast Boy absently hugged himself a bit at the thought of the criminal. While Starfire and Cyborg only shifted their stances slightly.

"Robin must have gone looking for him; it's the only thing he would leave the tower for right now. He was preoccupied the entire ride back here from the crime scene, and he barely even acknowledged us when we got back here."

"Uhh…crime scene?" Beast Boy asked with a clueless expression, which was ignored for the moment.

"Ah jeez, that kid can be a real dumbass sometimes," Cyborg shook his head at the foolish move. "Alright, let's be sure that that is in fact what he's done. Star, get on the tower's main computer and start a city wide scan of Slade hotspots, and if Rob is after him, he'll probably head to one of those places." Cyborg made his way towards the med bay doors as he continued talking.

"Raven, someone needs to get Beast Boy up to speed on what's gone down while he's been out of it. I'll hurry up and finish my replacement arm and join you in the Ops room, Star. Catch ya later B," Cyborg waved to the green teen as he disappeared into the hall.

The others knew that Cyborg was second in command when Robin was absent, so they didn't have a problem listening to his orders. Starfire quickly moved to the door, but paused before exiting.

"Raven…what about Beast Boy's, um…" Starfire asked rather shyly, seeing as how the boy was in the room.

"Whoever it is won't be here till tomorrow Starfire, we'll deal with it then. For now, let's just focus on finding Robin, okay?" Raven said calmly to ease the alien's uneasiness at discussing the subject.

Starfire nodded and with a final smile to the two other Titan's, she left the room, leaving a now very intrigued Beast Boy in her wake.

"Okay, so what was that all about? Who's coming tomorrow? What was that crime scene you mentioned a few seconds ago? Why is that vein in your head bulging?" Beast Boy asked rapid fire at the dark Titan. Raven massaged her temple as her eye twitched. Deep down, she was glad Beast Boy was back, but on the surface, nothing had changed. She was definitely not looking forward to this storytelling session.

"Alright…I'll start from the point after we found you until now. But you're going to have to tell me what happened with the 'other Beast Boy' in your head. That sounds just interesting enough to warrant a listen." Raven said as she moved a chair next to the bed.

"Deal," He said putting his hand out for a handshake, which she only stared at until he retracted it. "But first, you have to admit you missed me while I was out of it," the changeling said with a mischievous smile creeping onto his face. Raven stared blankly at him for a moment, her eye twitching once more.

"Right after we got you back to the med bay…" She ignored his offer completely, deciding _almost _instantly that his story wasn't worth it. He smile only broadened as she began, knowing he'd tell her anyway, and particularly interested in seeing her reaction to a certain part of his adventure into his psyche. As he thought about that specific part of the journey…an uncharacteristically sentimental sentence or two came to mind…

**Familiar Places, Familiar Faces:**

His footsteps echoed through the vast expanse of the building's interior. Piles of rubble and huge metal gears littered the floor of the room, casting eerie shadows across the ground as the few orange tinted lights which adorned the walls illuminated parts of the area dimly. Robin's cloak surrounded him completely as he walked warily through the long abandoned structure.

He came to a stop as he eyed the half-destroyed elevated walkways crisscrossing the upper level of the room, remembering the few times he had traversed them in his previous visits to this place. He scowled as he saw a fleeting shadow move somewhere off in his peripheral. He turned his head slightly to look, but again nothing was there. That was one of many he had thought he'd seen since he had entered the vast warehouse like structure.

He walked a little further into the center of the building before coming to a stop once more. He glanced about him before he spoke, his words echoing throughout the area as he did.

"I figured you'd be here," he said to the darkness, the orange lights barely reaching into the inky depths before him. The gleam of a solitary eye pierced the gloom ahead, affirming Robin's suspicion, and bringing a confident smirk to his face.

"Or is it you who is so predictable, Robin?" Slade's voice cut into the silence that had come after Robin had spoken. Robin clenched his fists beneath his cloak, wanting nothing more than to tear the master criminal apart, but instead deciding to fish for information first. He knew his chance would come soon enough.

"Quite a haul you pulled off today," Robin let his cloak move aside as he took a passive stance, not yet ready to assault the villain, but still prepared for the unexpected. He continued.

"I doubt you'd try and raise another commando army with all those weapons, It didn't work with Terra…it _won't_ work with your new pet either…" The venom in the teens voice was hardly hidden as he spoke, causing Slade to chuckle at the Boy Wonder's bitterness.

"True Robin, very true," Slade hadn't moved an inch since he had shown himself, and all Robin could see of him was the eye gleaming in the darkness that encompassed his foreboding form.

"Miss Markov proved to be a mistake in every sense of the word. You see, I've discovered that the only way to insure proper devotion…is to choose someone who's never walked in the light. They tend to betray their master for pathetic attachments such as…_friends_." The eye narrowed into what could only be described as the equivalent of a smile.

"I intend to move in an entirely different direction with my new apprentice. He's been against you and your friends since he began down his path. And I'm pleased to say he's coming along better than even _you_." Robin smirked and shook his head, taking a firmer stance while inching his hand closer to his belt.

"That's nice," He began, sarcasm dripping off the words, "But I doubt even he could use all those weapons himself. No matter how good he is with them…"

"Now now Robin, I do hope you're not expecting me to give up such an exceptional surprise this early in our little game." Slade's voice was infuriatingly even as he mocked the Titan. Robin only narrowed his eyes further in response.

"You and your friends will have to wait along with the rest of Jump City. These things do take time, which leaves the two of us at a bit of an impasse for the moment. And speaking of your friends…how _is _Beast Boy? Do you think he got the…_point,_ of my message?" Robin's eyes opened wider at the callous mention of his teammate. He growled through clenched teeth while Slade laughed quietly to himself. It was always nice to know he could push the Boy Wonder's buttons.

"Well, always a pleasure to chat with you Robin, but I must be going. I hope you'll understand," Before the villain could even move, Robin drew his bo-staff in a flash, and held it towards the darkness which shrouded his target.

"You're not going anywhere, Slade. I've been training for this day…I always knew you would return, even if the others didn't want to see it." Robin watched his mark carefully, and was completely taken off guard by what he saw next.

"I think you misunderstand the situation, boy," suddenly, the once solitary eye was joined by another, revealing Slade's absence. Robin was still trying to understand when his staff was pulled from the light he had been standing in and into the shadows, taking the Boy Wonder with it.

He yelled in surprise as he accelerated forward, only to stop inches from the blackness as his own staff connected with his jaw, sending him flying through the air to land painfully against one of the many huge gears scattered across the floor of the building. He grunted as he got to his feet as quickly as he could manage, just in time to see the Apprentice make his way into the light. His face soon shown more shock than he thought possible.

In the Apprentice's left hand, which was stretched out towards Robin, resided what looked like a knockoff of a Titan communicator, its screen holding a barely visible image of Slade. That however, was not what shocked the Boy Wonder. Adorning the Apprentice's right arm was a large gold shield, engraved with a large capital S; while his hand grasped Robins bo-staff.

"No…" Robin said disbelievingly, he could only think of one enemy he had faced before who carried as unique an item as that. The letter was different, but it all seemed to fit now. He forced himself to forget the pain growing in his already injured side as he asked a question he figured he already knew the answer to. "…Private…Hive?" he questioned the Apprentice.

"Actually," the former H.I.V.E. student started, resting one end of the staff on the ground as he leaned against it slightly, "I prefer Apprentice now. Has a bit more of a ring to it, in an 'I work for someone else' kind of way, don't you think?" Slade chuckled as Robin shook his head angrily.

"Until next time, Robin," Slade said ominously, "And Apprentice…see to it he lives. I'd hate for him miss what I have planned for his beloved city. I know he'll just _die _when he sees it…one can only hope…" Slade's eye reflected the dark smile his face held as the small communicator screen went black, ending the transmission. Hive placed the com onto his suit's belt and took the staff from his right hand into his left, twirling it a few times before looking to Robin.

"Not bad, I can see why you like to use this thing," The Apprentice said, looking the Boy Wonder over as he talked, Robin could tell he was choosing the best way to attack, and prepared himself for it.

"Thought you were done following orders after your little stint with General Immortus," Robin crouched in his fighting stance, just waiting for an excuse to assault the villain. "And murder is a pretty big step for a B-list criminal like you," the Boy wonder shot angrily, remembering the officers the Apprentice had killed hours earlier.

"Well, I guess I just wasn't following the right kind of person. Slade is a born leader, unlike Blood or that corpse of a General. I can respect that," The Apprentice replied casually, still staring intently at his target. "As for the people I killed today, that was just for...fun." Hive's eyes narrowed in amusement behind his mask, thoroughly enjoying the expression that statement got from the leader of the Titans.

"You…how could you say that?" Robin asked, a deep scowl adorning his face as he eyed the Apprentice. "I never took you for a psychotic killer, just someone on the wrong path." The Titan goaded, losing his patience with the villain.

"Bah! Wrong path…just because it goes against you and your precious Titan ethics, you assume I'm the one following a wrong path. But don't deceive yourself into thinking that you understand my motivation. You most definitely don't have the mind of a soldier," Hive said with venom in his distorted voice, gritting his teeth as he spoke. "If you did, you would recognize that the final objective always comes at a price, always is pursued despite some inevitable collateral damage," he continued with a growl.

"And what's your objective now, huh? To make widows and orphans? To stoop to Slade's level?!" Robin yelled, sickened by the Apprentice's delusional logic.

"NO" The Apprentice shouted back at a more intense volume, the voice modifier making his words all the more eerie, "Victory! Over this city, and its pathetic inhabitants! But most of all, victory over _YOU_!" He finally lunged forward, swinging Robin's bo-staff at the Titan's head.

Robin ducked easily, having been prepared for the attack. He rolled away as the villain recovered from the powerful miss, throwing an explosive disc at his target's back. The Apprentice anticipated this move and quickly turned into it, swinging his shield into place. It took the better part of the blast, leaving Hive ample time to counter. He did a quick spin, releasing the shield from his arm as he spun back around to face Robin.

It sailed through the air rapidly, giving Robin mere seconds to react. He dropped to the ground, letting the shield pass narrowly over him, giving the large golden boomerang-like projectile a glance as it sailed off into a dark corner of the structure. He looked back to his enemy just in time to block a nearly fatal blow from his own staff.

He took hold of the weapon, grasping it tightly in a vice grip. This, however, did not deter the Apprentice. With a show of impressive strength, he swung the staff with Robin attached, raising the Titan off of the ground and swinging him in a full circle through the air before smashing him into one of the huge gears dotting the ground floor of the building.

Robin fell hard to the ground, groaning in pain as he shakily stood. The former H.I.V.E. student's newfound strength was a major surprise to Robin. He had never remembered the villain being able to hit that hard before. However, he didn't have much time to think as the Apprentice lunged forward once again, this time bringing the bo-staff strait down over his head.

Robin dove out of the way, doing a quick roll and easily regaining his feet. "Since when have you been able to hit that hard, Hive?" He asked breathlessly, aggression still thick in his voice. The injuries to his side were beginning to take their toll. Smacking against the gear must have done more damage than he had thought. The shield sailed back into view, the whole onslaught of attacks taking mere seconds, Hive reached out a gloved hand, grabbing it as it neared him and slipping it back into place.

"You'd be amazed what a little intensive training can do to someone," the Apprentice answered icily, swinging the pilfered weapon again, this time striking the Titan with a glancing blow to the thigh as he scrambled to avoid the hit. It stung, but he kept to his feet, only stumbling slightly as he prepared for more.

Another few swipes were narrowly avoided as the Boy Wonder began to slow. He knew he had to get his staff back. He needed to end this, now! He saw his opening as the Apprentice brought the weapon down with the slightest bit of hesitation, enough for Robin to block the blow with his hand. He grasped the staff firmly and used Hive's weight advantage against him. Quickly pulling on his end, Robin used the tension from the Apprentice's still solid grip on the staff to propel himself into a kick. The Titan's foot connected with Hive's mask, sending the villain skidding backwards from the force of the impact before landing roughly on his back.

Still midair after landing the kick, Robin swiftly planted the now free end of his bo-staff in the floor, using his momentum to vault himself further into the air. Aiming for the Apprentice, he drew the weapon over his head, bringing it down with all his strength in a nearly earth-shattering blow to the criminal's masked face.

Hive cried out as the mask cracked against his face, gripping the offending object with his hands. He tore the metal article away, revealing a long, bloody gash, traveling from the middle of his forehead all the way down to his chin. Blood dripped from the wound, falling in droplets to the ground as he now glared vehemently at Robin.

"Damn you!" The Apprentice yelled as he jumped to his feet, rapidly closing the distance between himself and the Titan. He swung his shield at the teen, the sharpened edge cut through the air dangerously close to the Boy Wonder, which Robin dodged skillfully, having fully gained his second wind. Spinning his staff about him defensively, Robin countered the Apprentice's furious shield slashes, striking back with every opportunity he could find.

Hive was growing tired from the constant swinging of his shield, and Robin could see it. But he also knew desperation could be a powerful ally to those brought to it, and those lucky enough to harness the chances it sometimes provided. And if either of the two were getting there, it was the Apprentice. Hive, after a final swing in the volley, stopped, stumbling back slightly as he fought to regain his breath. He knew Robin was a fast mover, but this was ridiculous. The pain from his face, along with the now blinding anger at the teen hero didn't help either.

Robin entered a defensive stance, pointing the staff towards the Apprentice. He quirked an eyebrow and smirked at the exhausted villain. "Apparently Slade didn't teach you much on endurance during your '_intensive training'_, did he?"

Hive gritted his teeth angrily, forcing himself to focus, if not for one more attack. He growled as he hurdled forward, raising his shield arm over his head, and brought it down with every ounce of energy he had left. Robin instantly brought his bo-staff up to block, digging his feet into the loose flooring of Slade's former dwelling, the Apprentice being too close for the Titan to evade effectively.

The shield connected with the staff. The force of the strike, and perhaps a little luck on Hive's part, broke Robin's weapon cleanly in half, sending him reeling backwards. He did a quick spin to reposition himself and keep from stumbling any further. Robin looked at the two pieces of the formally whole staff he held in his hands, and then to the Apprentice who had fallen to his knees shortly after land the blow. The villain breathed heavily, looking up from the ground to face his enemy. He glared at the Titan, grinding his teeth in anger. Robin continued to smirk as he twirled both pieces of the staff in each hand. He walked forward, closing the distance between himself and the criminal. He extended his left arm towards the kneeling Apprentice, taking the staff piece in that hand and placing it under the villains chin threateningly.

"Give it up, Hive," Robin said in an equally threatening voice, his smirk disappearing as he eyed the weary criminal, "you're done. I'm taking you back to Titans Tower, and you and I are going to have a little chat about your _master _and his plan."

"Fool!" The Apprentice growled as he suddenly sprang forward, trying futilely to land a hit, only brushing through the Titan's cape as he passed. Robin easily sidestepped, smacking the villain in the back of his still helmeted head with half of the broken staff. Hive collapsed forward, face planting with a groan, as the Titan simply shook his head.

"Are you done? Just do us both a favor and quit while you're only bleeding," Robin said sarcastically, though maintaining a serious air, drawing on his years of experience being around Raven. Apparently, she was rubbing off on him.

The Apprentice coughed as he flipped himself onto his back, eyes narrowed in anger at the Boy Wonder. He rose up on his elbows, speaking with a chuckle as he eyed the Titan. Robin found this a little unnerving.

"I'm not going anywhere with you, Bird Boy. You're staying right here, indefinitely…" Before Robin could think to stop him, Hive reached his hand to his other wrist, pressing a button on the gauntlet provided by his Apprentice armor. Robin leaped backwards, half expecting a bomb to go off, but nothing happened. Soon though, he realized he probably would have been better off with a bomb. Well near a hundred of Slade's robot commandos dropped from the concealing darkness of the ruined buildings rafters, landing all around the two combatants.

Seeing the odds stacked against him, and not too proud to admit his limits (for the moment at least), Robin swiftly reached for his communicator, feeling now would be a good time to switch it back on. He froze for a moment, wide eyed as he felt the empty spot which had once held the device. Hive's laughter solidified the Titan's assumption, causing Robin to shift his gaze to the beaten villain a few feet from him.

"Bet you thought I was trying to hit you a minute ago, didn't you?" He chuckled as he rose fully to his feet, Robin's communicator firmly grasped within his gloved hand. "I decided to go with plan B, hope you don't mind, but going to your tower is definitely not a part of it…"

"Don't do this Hive, I've beaten you already, and if it hadn't been for your little stunts back at the warehouse, you'd already be in custody…" Robin tried to reason with the Apprentice, knowing even he couldn't handle this many of the Robotic commandos by himself. As he spoke, his eyes never left the communicator clutched within the wannabe-soldier's hand, mind working overtime to formulate a plan for its retrieval. Unfortunately, the Apprentice knew what the Titan was thinking, and quickly demolished the hero's hope.

"Oh yeah," He said as he glanced at the communicator, "wouldn't want your friends coming here and messing with a solid plan now would we?" Dropping the device to the ground, he smashed it under one of his heavy military-style boots. Sparks, accompanied by some very unpleasant crunching noises, caused the Boy Wonder to close his eyes for a moment, almost feeling the brutal destruction of his only lifeline as though it were a part of him. He opened them once more, a death glare fixed on the now smirking Apprentice.

"I'm sure you'll have a lot more fun with these boys by yourself, without the extra dance partner getting in your way," Hive said as he limped his way backwards through the throng of metal men, disappearing from site, but still maintaining a vocal presence, "Don't worry though, they won't kill you, Master's orders after all, they'll just make you _wish_ you were dead…"

The Apprentice's voice faded, leaving only Robin and a hundred very aggressive Sladebots in the nearly destroyed former lair. The Titan was already in a battle stance, ready for attacks from several angles at once. He spun the divided pieces of his bo-staff, a scowl set firmly in place as he eyed the now advancing enemies.

It was at that moment that he decided to voice his exact thought at his current predicament.

"…Crud."

**(A/N) Alright, hope you all enjoyed chapter five of Shock and Awe. Big thanks to all of you who are still following the story and watching for updates, and to all of you who are just now joining us.**

**Now, good news and bad news; The good news is, chapter six is finished and being beta read as we speak and should be up in a week or so, which is pretty fast for me :p The bad news, chapter seven will be a month at the least, between it proving somewhat difficult to write, an impending trip to California, and the fact that my computer is starting to freak out on me, seven is gonna be a bit. **

**So, all I can do with that is promise to write as fast as my little brain can come up with the story, and hope for the best. Again, thanks for reading, and in case you haven't already, don't forget to vote on the poll attached to my profile. It's to see who _you _would like to see come in as Beast Boy's replacement, and the window for voting is closing, seeing as how chapter seven is when its going to go into action. If you don't care who, then I'll end up choosing, either way, its happening in chapter seven if it kills me! **

**And yes, no matter how long it takes me, I WILL finish writing this story, that's a promise!  
**

**Till next time, folks...  
**

**~DeathProofHero  
**


	6. Words, Wounds and Rescues

**(A/N) Hello everyone, DeathproofHero back again to bring you chapter six of Shock and Awe! I know its been a while, and I hope the waiting wasn't too bad for you all. This chapter took a _lot_ longer than expected, but its finally finished! **

**Big thanks to my beta readers, Novus Ordo Seclorum and Jadee for helping me make this chapter worthy of posting, you guys are awesome! If you haven't read any of their stories, I suggest you take a look, totally worth it. Another thanks to my reviewers, and to my still silent readers as well, hope this story is proving to be worth your time ^^**

**Alright, enough talking, lets get down to reading! More Authors notes at the bottom, be sure to read...or not, whatever.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own the Teen Titans, or anything/anyone else that may appear in this story. Lets just say DC owns everything and leave it at that, shall we?**

* * *

**Chapter Six: Words, Wounds and Rescues  
**

**Guarded:**

"What made you say it?" Beast Boy asked, effectively ending the silence that had fallen over the two. "I mean…it's just not like you…at all." He had brought it up during his retelling of his inner travels, and had ground the conversation to an awkward halt.

She looked at him for a moment, staring blankly as she tried to find an answer for something she had honestly never thought he would hear, and that she herself had hoped to forget. Sure, his mind had reacted to her voice, not to mention her touch, but she never imagined him actually understanding her while comatose. _**Wait a minute…he couldn't feel **_**that**_**...could he? **_She asked herself, growing rather panicked at the notion. Her mind reeled.

"Raven," The green teen spoke once more, waving a hand in front of her vacant face, "Did you hear me?"

She shook her head, clearing her rampant thoughts as she realized she had been silent for a bit _too_ long.

"Uhh…" intelligent words escaped her as she looked at his inquisitive expression. He only quirked an eyebrow at her abnormally dim response, surprised that his question could make her appear so frazzled.

"What's the matter Rae? It's a pretty simple question…" He was starting to get a little annoyed at her apparent inability to answer something he thought so simple. _**So it was a little corny and sentimental, big deal. I don't get why she has such a problem admitting to something as harmless as that… **_He pondered as she continued to look at him blankly. Then, something strange clicked in his head, _**wait…**_

'_I think she could quite possibly…_like_ you.' _His eyes widened slightly, the primal side's words echoing through his head as he stared questioningly at the dark girl before him. This, of course, went unnoticed by Raven as she continued in her quest for a complete, coherent sentence.

_**No…no way it's possible. This is just how Raven is, she doesn't like embarrassing things like this…but, why **_**would **_**she be embarrassed? **_Now he _had_ to know why she had said those things. He was about to ask her once more, but curtly quelled his impatience when she finally spoke up.

"I-I don't know…" The sorceress said quietly, almost in a whisper, forcing the changeling to listen carefully. "I think…I think it was just seeing you…so, powerless…I've never seen you like that, really…" She spoke with a little more confidence, seeing him listening to her so intently. "And…as for _what _I said," She paused, trying to think of a proper explanation, "Do you remember what you said to me a couple of years ago, when…Mal-"

"Yeah, I remember. I told you that no matter what you thought, you weren't, and aren't alone…" The green Titan said thoughtfully, cutting her off before she could finish uttering the obviously painful name. She looked at him fully as he spoke, though her face was obscured by her cloaks hood, an almost indiscernible smile curving her lips as she remembered his words. She nodded.

"Yes…well, when I saw you there, I remembered what you had told me…I thought, even if you couldn't really hear me, you deserved something close to what you gave me that day. Admittedly, I'm not the best in these kinds of situations," She blushed slightly, her embarrassment at her softly spoken words to the comatose changeling catching up to her. "What you said was definitely more…poignant, but it was all I could think of at the time…"

He smiled his toothy smile as she finished her explanation, contented that she had been able to tell him.

"Well, it was plenty meaningful in my book. Especially with your track record with sentiment," He chuckled, and she cocked an eyebrow as he continued to smile at her. She raised an eyebrow inquisitively, now somewhat intrigued as to what he meant.

"Oh come on, you gotta remember last Valentine's Day, Right? When Starfire insisted we all exchange the, uh," He paused, resting his fist against his chin à la The Thinker, trying to recall his perky alien friend's exact phrasing. "What was that she called them…oh yeah, I remember now!" He snapped his fingers in triumph as his memory finally aided him, "The 'heart-shaped cards of friendship'. Star was _very _excited with the idea. I remember that day because you had tried so hard to keep that particular holiday discreetly hidden from her. I still say five years wasn't a bad run, either…"

He chuckled again. The Empath's slight facial tick at the mention of what she considered a rather horrid event did not go unnoticed by the changeling.

"Do you recall what you wrote in the card you ended up giving her?" He asked with a smirk. She shook her head, trying to recollect something that hadn't been very important to her at the time. She didn't have to think long though, as the green Titan laying in the bed beside her took it upon himself to remind her, "'Dear, Starfire…Well, here you go…'"

He laughed as he recited the words from memory, though, admittedly, the phrase wasn't much of a space taker. She gave a hint of a smirk and rolled her eyes as he continued to chuckle, now holding his sides as the pain in his back reacted to the action.

"How do you remember something as trivial as that? You're not exactly renowned for your amazing memory," She questioned as she leaned back in her chair, which sat directly alongside the changeling's temporary bed. He fell back into his pillow as the pain from his laughing subsided.

"My memory is just fine!" He protested with a small smile, "Besides, I tend to retain anything funny or joke-related. And trust me, that was a good one; if not just for the fact you so rarely make them. You're pretty funny when you want to be, ya know?" She shrugged, deciding to take it as a complement coming from him. Anyone else would have been glared to death by now, but she always let him get away with little things like that…most of the time, at least.

They were both silent for awhile after that: Raven examining her suddenly very intriguing hands and Beast Boy staring off into space, hearing only the heart monitor's steady beeping. A few moments later, a thought caught his interest. He shifted his gaze over to Raven, who was still staring at her hands; she could feel his eyes on her, and took a glance at him.

"What?" She asked, now noticing the mischievous smile adorning his emerald green face.

"What would you say to me now? Now that you've had time to think of something a little more "_poignant_" to say…" His smile broadened as he spoke, seeing the look of surprise that escaped passed her normally stony façade. It was, of course, quickly pushed back, her face returning to normal just as quickly as it had lapsed. Her eyes, however, still held an anxious look at the strange question.

Beast Boy knew he was skating on thin ice by asking her such a question, but he had already almost died once…how much worse could it really get for him? "I mean, you did say that it was all you could think to say _at_ _the time_."

"You're kidding…right?" She asked him as a frown crept across her face.

"No, I'm serious…I'm just curious, really," He said with a shrug, deciding to downplay his interest. He glanced over at Raven, taking note of her expression; her normally stoic countenance betrayed her, brimming with nervous anxiety. Though he thought her seemingly imperceptible changes in demeanor were amusing, she was clearly becoming unnerved.

'_**No need to push it…' **_Beast Boy told himself thoughtfully. He still held her gaze, despite her clear agitation; his eyes widened in shock, however, as she began to answer.

"Honestly…I-"

The sudden entrance of a familiar voice ringing throughout the Med bay cut her off, causing them both to jump in their respective seats before they realized what was happening.

"Raven, get to the Ops room, now," Cyborg spoke urgently through the Tower's com system. Raven looked from the speaker built into the large room's wall to her green friend lying in the bed beside her. She was still a bit unsure after hearing Beast Boy's question. She opened her mouth as though to speak, but quickly closed it as Cyborg's voice called out once again.

"Move, girl!"

She jumped out of her seat, her gaze still fixed on the changeling for a moment. She shook the thoughts with which she had been preoccupied out of her head as she regained her focus. She turned and levitated her way hurriedly towards the Med bay doors, coming to a halt as Beast Boy called her name.

"Wait, Raven! Take me with you!" He said as he raised himself to his elbows, cringing slightly as he did so.

"What are you, a glutton for punishment?" She asked sarcastically with a quirked eyebrow, crossing her arms over her chest from her hovering position at the doorway.

"No, come on," He said hastily, pointing towards the far side of the room near a large ceiling to floor cabinet amongst some other—at the moment—unused medical equipment. "Cy keeps a couple folded up wheelchairs in there…just in case."

"I'm not going to wheel you around the tower after you _just_ woke up from a coma! That would be idiotic…not to mention detrimental to your-"

"Oh come on, it was like a what, two day coma? I know I'm a little sore…alright, I'm in a LOT of pain, but after what you said happened to you guys with that new _Apprentice_ dude, there's no way I'm just gonna sit here without a clue." The changeling protested, already trying to move into a sitting position on the bed.

"Ugh…alright, stop moving," Raven replied as she quickly glided over to the cabinet, opened the doors and retrieved one of the wheeled devices. She moved it next to the bed and—as gingerly as possible—helped him into it, still gaining a pained grunt from the shape-shifter for her troubles.

"Ouch!" He yelped as she started to push the chair towards the exit.

"What now?" She questioned him impatiently, bringing them to a stop. She knew Cyborg was waiting, and that he was not the most patient of people.

"Uh, _hello_…" Beast Boy lifted his arm to show the IV needle sticking into his forearm.

"Oh…right," Raven said sheepishly, wheeling him back so she could reach the IV bag hanging on the medical bed stand. She hooked it up to the chair's built in stand and checked it quickly. Deciding they had wasted enough time, she took hold of the chair's handles and softly chanted her mantra. Wondering why they weren't moving, Beast Boy glanced over his shoulder at the dark Titan.

"Why aren't we…?"

"Hold on," She said coolly. His eyes widened as he realized what she was doing.

"Waitwaitwait! You know I hate-" He turned his body in the chair towards her completely, just in time to see her eyes turn ghostly white as both Titans became engulfed in the sorceress's dark energy, disappearing in the visage of a large, ominous raven.

* * *

**Push Comes to Shove:**

"…teleporting!"

"Whoa!" Cyborg yelped as the two figures appeared beside him. He looked them over, calming down as he saw it was only his teammates. "Why is he outta bed?" He asked the Azarathian girl in an accusatory tone.

"He wouldn't take no for an answer," She replied dryly as she stepped away from the wheelchair to stand next to Starfire. The alien girl was typing away feverishly at the tower's main computer keypad. From what Raven could tell, she was scanning the city block by block. A 3-D map of Jump City played across the Ops Center's massive TV monitor. Parts of the translucent metropolis were darkened with a reddish tint, showing the sections already scanned for any activity from Slade, while a few parts of the map glowed yellow, representing those spots yet to be scanned.

"I hate teleporting…I think I'm gonna hurl," Beast Boy commented weakly from his chair, looking slightly greener than usual as he held a hand to his stomach.

"I tried to tell you to stay," Raven replied, not removing her gaze from the map.

"Okay, I know you're not in the best condition right now, but don't be chuckin' in my Ops Center, grass stain," Cyborg said as he eyed the youngest of the Titans apprehensively.

"Geez, what's a guy gotta do to get cut a little slack around here? Get stabbed or somethin'? Oh wait!" Beast Boy said sarcastically, though still sounding on the verge of being completely sick.

"Too soon, man," Cyborg said in a similar tone, turning his attention back the monitor, deciding not to send his green friend back to the Infirmary just yet. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, looking for the smallest sign that would point to their leader's location.

"So what was the rush for me to get up here?" Raven asked as she turned to look at the Titan's second in command, arms crossed over her chest as she waited for his reply.

"The scans aren't turning up anything, not that I expected them to since the nimrod switched off his communicator's tracking device," Cyborg replied with a little irritation fringing his words. He turned to face the Empath as well.

"And…that has what to do with me?" She stared at him questioningly.

"You still have that psychic link thingy with Rob, right?" Cyborg asked, taking glances at the map as he spoke.

"Yes, it's a permanent mental connection between us. I take it you want me to try and find him through it?" She asked knowingly. Cyborg nodded in reply. She sighed, looking to the map as the reddish sections quickly enveloped the few yellow ones that remained, turning away once more to meet Cyborg's gaze.

"I don't like going inside people's heads…you know that…" The sorceress said sternly, her eyes taking on a foreboding glint as they often did when she didn't like something.

"Well, we're kinda outta options here, Rae…" Cyborg started, moving over to the Tamaranian girl who was still typing away furiously, determined to find their wayward leader. Cyborg rested a hand on her shoulder, causing her to jump slightly. She looked up to him despondently, a grim look marring her usually perky countenance. Cyborg continued: "We need to find him; it's dangerous for him to go off solo like this, especially with Slade out there waiting for him. And patrolling for him with just the three of us is just _inviting_ more trouble."

Raven looked at her alien friend as she leaned worriedly against the cybernetic Titan for some semblance of comfort and saw the deeply concerned expression etched across her face. The Azarathian felt herself sigh again as she shook her head slightly. Despite her better judgment, the sorceress conceded.

"Fine, I'll do it. Just, stay quiet so I can concentrate, and whatever you do, _don't_ touch me," Raven said, moving over near Beast Boy, who still sat in his wheelchair in the center of the Ops room. His nausea seemed to have subsided, evidenced by his reversion to his normal skin color. She pulled her legs beneath her in the lotus position, and levitated a few feet off the ground. She closed her eyes, clearing her mind as she took a few deep, calming breaths to help her focus on Robin's own unique energy signature; searching through the vast city surrounding them for his location. After a few moments of silence passed through the room, Raven's eyes shot open, a ghostly white glow replacing her normally lavender colored retinas.

The others watched as Raven's soul-self suddenly left her body, hovering high above them, near the ceiling. It remained there for a few moments, seemingly searching for something as it floated in a specter-like manner. The other Titans exchanged puzzled glances with one another before looking back to the entity of black energy. Soon, however, the soul-self sped off through the room, phasing straight through the large glass window which enclosed a corner of the Common Room and disappeared into the darkness outside the Tower. Again, the Titans exchanged skeptical glances, resigning themselves as they waited for a result to make itself known.

---

She could see the city blazing passed as her soul-self raced towards what she presumed was Robin's location. The lights that the city emitted were dizzying; the entire metropolis was lit up as the evening approached the wee hours of the night. From what she could tell, no stars were visible in the night sky, suggesting heavy cloud cover had moved in. She remembered seeing clouds when she and the others had made the trip back to the Tower earlier that day. The dreary sight had seemed fitting after what had transpired that morning. She only hoped the night wouldn't follow the same ghastly trend of the day's events, which always seemed to be a futile hope.

Things became less blurry as her soul-self began to slow, the transition from the extreme speed to a gentler pace was a bit of an adjustment, but she soon saw where the inky entity had taken her.

_**Please Robin, tell me you're not in **_**there…**

She saw the former lair of the man the Titans despised so greatly…though she used the term _man _loosely. Her fears were confirmed as she found herself moving quickly through the walls off the decrepit building, and into the fray within.

---

Beast Boy and the others waited restlessly in the Ops center, Raven still hovering silently in the center of the room next to the changeling. The computer's search had finished, and just as Cyborg had thought, turned up nothing on their errant leader's location. Starfire sat in a chair close to the console, hugging herself lightly as her worry-laden thoughts drifted to Robin; she knew she should have been more attentive after the fight against the Apprentice. They had all seen the inner-struggle afflicting Robin the entirety of their journey home. She had thought he only needed space. Now she wondered what would happen because of it.

Cyborg still stood with his arms crossed over his chest, facing the T.V. monitor. He felt helpless and hoped that something, _anything, _would stand out on the now completely darkened 3-D map. He too was worried, but as much as he was concerned, he was also equally angry. Angry that their _fearless_ leader would do something as stupid as playing solo hero when they needed what little strength-in-numbers they had just to stay afloat.

He and Robin hadn't always seen eye-to-eye when it came to the leadership of the Titans, but now he wondered whether or not his friend could think clearly enough to remain in charge. He hated to admit it, but blind arrogance and hardheadedness had always been a chink in Robin's armor, especially when it came to a certain masked adversary. Now, the stakes were far higher than ever before leaving little wiggle-room for mistakes; Cyborg knew that only time would tell whether his fears were legitimate.

Beast Boy sat quietly in his wheelchair, his left elbow planted on the chair's armrest, his head resting in his palm as he stared at the floating girl beside him. He watched her intently, waiting for something to happen. Much like the first time she had gone into the Boy Wonder's mind, he waited to see her body react to some invisible punch or kick that would send her tumbling from her perched position. He thought—not about Robin—but of the conversation between Raven and himself; before Cyborg had abruptly interrupted their discussion at an inopportune moment. He knew he should have been focused on the problem at hand, but still…he wondered.

"Whoa!" Cyborg suddenly broke the silence in the room, drawing both Starfire and Beast Boy's attention immediately to him.

"What?" The changeling asked in a quieter tone, mindful of his proximity to the entranced sorceress.

"I just saw something. Looked like some sort of radar blip on the screen," The cybernetic Titan replied as he stepped over to the main computer's controls. Starfire rose quickly from her seat, watching Cyborg intently as he entered commands on the keypad. The 3-D map on the massive T.V. monitor zoomed to a specific location, close to where Cyborg had seen the 'blip'.

"What was the cause of the blip, Cyborg?" Starfire asked as she watched the screen.

"Analyzing…give me a second," He replied calmly, watching as data scrawled across part of the T.V. screen. "Uh oh," He said nervously after a moment or two had passed, causing the alien princesses eyes to widen.

"What do you mean 'uh oh'?" Beast Boy asked hurriedly as he wheeled forward to get a better view of his half metal teammate.

"Alright, good news and bad news…" Cyborg began, a nervous chuckle escaping him, "Good news is, I think I know where our boy is. Bad news…"

"What?" Starfire and Beast Boy asked simultaneously, both anxious for the second in command to finish his thought.

"Well, the blip was caused by a fail-safe I put into all of our communicators. It sends out a solitary high-frequency beacon that acts as a last resort locator if the com and tracking device are disabled. It doesn't last for long, but if you're looking for it, it serves its purpose. That's how I know where Robin is…" Cyborg said seriously, his human eye deceiving his otherwise-stoic expression; it was clear he wasn't sharing everything he knew.

"So, we know where he is. I'm not hearing the bad news part, Cy," Beast Boy said, his eyes fixed on the half metal Titan. Cyborg rubbed the back of his neck absently as he spoke once more.

"The bad news _is_… that blip only goes off when one of the communicators is…destroyed." Cyborg replied gravely. Starfire gasped. She rushed forward and grabbed the cybernetic teen by the shoulders, holding him firmly in place; the intensity of her panicked green eyes almost causing him pain as they scanned his face.

"D-does that mean he is…" She couldn't bring herself to finish. Instead, she released her teammate and looked to the map quickly. "We must go and find him, now! If Robin is in danger, we must help him!"

"Hold on, Starfire, we can't leave without Raven, and we can't just yank her outta her trance. We have to wait. But I'm sure if she's on the right track, she'll discover where he is and be back in no time," Cyborg said as reassuringly as he could manage, placing a comforting hand on the Tamaranian's shoulder as he spoke. She glared at him for a moment, not wanting to wait. Soon though, her gaze softened and she nodded half-heartedly, her eyes now staring dispiritedly at the floor.

"Where is Robin anyway?" Beast Boy asked after a moment of silence. Cyborg rubbed the back of his neck again nervously before he spoke once more.

"Uhh…that's the other bad news…"

---

Raven could hear loud, labored yells echoing around her as her soul-self entered the vast expanse of the dilapidated building; they were familiar to her, battle cries she had known for years. She only saw the entire situation for a few moments before her soul-self rapidly closed in on the Boy Wonder, entering him—virtually undetected—as he dodged and ducked dozens of robotic feet and fists flying at him from all directions. From what she had been able to piece together from her brief vantage point outside of Robin's body, she knew he was hopelessly outnumbered. At that very moment he was single-handedly staving off more than a hundred of Slade's robot commandos, which was an impressive feat unto itself; a feat made all the more impressive by the several dozen of them that already littered the ground in crumpled heaps.

Her view was now limited to what he saw, which was rather dizzying for someone unaccustomed to the Boy Wonder's lightning-fast reflexes. She had to concentrate intensively to see clearly and keep their minds in sync. Her efforts were effective as her senses became more acute, her soul-self melding with the other Titan. Unfortunately, the drawbacks of this were immediate: She could feel every ounce of the incredible strain his body was under, every aching muscle, every bruise and cut, but the most intense pain came from his side that had first been injured during his encounter with the Slade-bot in the Tower, which had now become all-encompassing.

She knew he had to have a cracked rib by now, the thought making her equally aware of how hard he was finding it to breathe, his lungs burning intensely as he dodged yet another volley of attacks. She saw that he held what appeared to be two pieces of a broken bo-staff firmly in his hands, using them to counter as many blows as he could. The fight definitely looked one-sided; she knew she had to get him help. First, she had to tell him it was on the way.

"_Robin, can you hear me?_" She asked him calmly, trying to cut through the frantic thoughts screaming through his head as he fought. She could sense surprise wash over him and join the many other emotions swimming through him.

_**Raven?! **_He replied, the adrenalin pumping through him frazzling his thoughts, _**Where did you come from?!**_

He grabbed one of the robots by the leg as it tried to land a kick to his already injured side. He let out another yell as he spun the machine in a full circle, knocking down several of the other combatants in the process. He released the commando's leg, letting it fly off into the throng of machine men, taking out a few of them with the mighty throw. It was a small victory in the massive melee, but it came at a cost: His bo-staff shards were now out of reach, him having dropped them to manhandle the Slade-bot.

"_Robin, I know where you are now, I'll get the others and-"_

She was cut off as a solid kick was landed on Robin's back due to his momentary lapse in defense, sending a jolt of pain through his body and into her mind. Robin spun around, ignoring the pain as best he could, though she could tell he was about out of tricks…and stamina. He blocked another kick from the same assailant, the blow connecting fiercely with his forearm, sending the Boy Wonder skidding backwards along the loose flooring toward several more blows from the enemies behind him. He cried out in pain as he was thrust forward once more, tumbling to the ground harshly. To his credit, Robin rolled out of the fall, making it to his feet as gracefully as possible and straight into the rock-hard fist of yet another Slade-bot.

The next hit made it nearly impossible for Raven to maintain their connection. She could only watch helplessly as Robin fell straight backwards, an arc of crimson liquid streaming through the air from his mouth as he plummeted, his energy depleted. He coughed, rolling onto his side so that all she could see was the floor beneath him. He groaned before speaking aloud, not caring if the machines heard or not.

"Whatever you're going to do, Raven…" He said as he spit blood that was collecting in his mouth onto the ground, the sound of the commandos regrouping around him as he spoke, "Do it fast…"

She saw him quickly reach into his utility belt, retrieving two Birdarangs from one of the small holders. Just as quickly as he had drawn them, he combined them with unbridled speed. He vaulted to his feet once more, spinning around rapidly and swinging a now fully-formed sword through the air, slicing the closest robot straight down the middle. The machine froze for a moment, all the others also stopping their advance. Suddenly, the Slade-bot split—revealing a perfect dissection of the machine—before the two pieces slumped to the ground in a heap.

Raven, knowing time was short, called her soul-self out of Robin's body, and left him to an uncertain fate, quickly leaving the building the way she had entered. She once again blazed through the sky above Jump City, making for the Tower as fast as the bird-like entity could move.

* * *

**Rescuers:**

Cyborg paced nervously through the Ops room. It had been several minutes since they had discovered Robin's location, and Raven's soul-self had yet to return to her body. He was beginning to think that pursuing Robin without Raven was a distinct possibility; they couldn't wait forever, especially with the look Starfire had on her face. He knew if they waited much longer, the alien girl would surely burst from anxiety as she sat impatiently in the chair near the main computer. He watched as her fingers tapped nervously against her legs as she waited. The half-metal Titan glanced back to the map of the city, his eyes falling on Robin's location before he let his gaze fall on Raven's levitating form, then to the green teen next to her.

Beast Boy had moved his wheelchair directly in front of the Azarathian, and now sat staring into her ghostly white eyes as though—if he stared hard enough—she would immediately wake from her trance and rejoin them. It, of course, hadn't worked, but that didn't seem to deter the changeling. Cyborg was the first to break the uneasy silence that had settled over the room; the only noise up to that point being the hum of the Tower's master computer as it worked.

"This is taking way too long…" The cybernetic teen mumbled under his breath, though in the quiet atmosphere it sounded far louder than he had intended.

"Just give her a sec, dude. I'm sure she'll come back any minute now…" Beast Boy replied as he looked over to his best friend, leaning back in his chair to alleviate the soreness that had been spreading through his body.

"We don't have a minute, BB. Who knows what's happening to Rob while we're just sitting here," Cyborg said as he walked closer to the green teen, his arms crossed in front of him as he faced his teammate.

"That is it! I can stand this _waiting_ no longer!" Starfire cried out as she shot up from her seat, eyes and fists glowing green from her aggravated state. "We must go, now! Before there is no Robin left to save!"

"Whoa, Star, calm down!" Cyborg said cautiously as he walked over to the greatly-troubled alien, placing his hands on her shoulders in an attempt to calm her. "I'm sure Raven is almost-"

Before he could finish, and almost as if on cue, the bird-like mass of dark energy in question phased through the Ops center's ceiling, streaking past the others on a crash course with its possessor. As the soul-self re-entered her body, Raven took a sharp intake of breath, her eyes snapping back to focus and losing their ghostly-white glow before she abruptly dropped to the floor; the sheer speed at which the entity entered causing her to be thrown off balance.

"Ow," The sorceress said monotonously as she looked around the room, propping herself up on her elbows. A green hand was held out to her as Beast Boy offered to help her up, still in his seated position with an absent grin on his face. She took his hand and was soon standing beside him. She gave him a nod of thanks as she dusted herself off, which he returned with a mock salute, still smiling at her.

"'Bout time," Cyborg said hurriedly as he and Starfire rushed to her side.

"Sorry… It took me longer than I thought it would to get back here," Raven replied as she noted the worried expression plastered across Starfire's face, "But I found him. He's-"

"We know." Cyborg said, cutting her off mid-sentence, "We found out where he was a couple minutes after you left. No time to explain, though. We gotta get to him, fast."

"Right, I'll take us there. No time to waste!" Raven said as she moved to the center of the room. She brought her left arm out in front of her, facing her palm outward as she closed her eyes in concentration.

"Azarath…Metrion…Zinthos!"

Her chant reverberated throughout the room as a swirling black portal appeared before her. Electricity seemed to pulse around the portal's edges, giving off a supernatural blue glow as the vortex grew. "Alright, let's go," Raven moved towards the portal, stopping just before the entrance to look back at her teammates.

"What about me? Am I just supposed to sit here and do nothing?" Beast Boy asked earnestly, his eyes darting between the three other Titans—searching for an answer—as Starfire and Cyborg moved to join Raven before the portal's entrance.

"Hell yeah you're just gonna sit there!" Cyborg replied matter-of-factly as he paused to glance back at the changeling, "No way are we letting you do _anything_ that might mess you up anymore than you already are. You seriously think you can even _walk _right now?" The cybernetic teen asked Beast Boy, his human eyebrow furrowed as a knowing look encompassed his face. Beast Boy rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he thought the question through.

"Alright, fair enough." Beast Boy replied dejectedly after a few moments. "But I can't sit here! I feel useless enough as it is…is there anything I can do?" He asked, a tinge of desperation in his voice as he looked pleadingly at his best friend.

"Stay in the Ops room and monitor our progress. You can be our lifeline in case things get outta hand." Cyborg said as Starfire and Raven stepped through the portal, both giving Beast Boy one last glance before disappearing from the Tower completely. "We'll keep you updated. Sorry, B, just hang tight, alright?"

Beast Boy nodded, a scowl spreading across his face at his inability to help the others. "Good. Watch our backs, man…" With that, Cyborg stepped through the portal, the vortex of dark energy closing the moment he was completely through its entrance.

Beast Boy stared at the now-empty space his friends had exited through for a few moments before sighing explosively, running his hands down his face as his frustration simmered. He shook his head as he wheeled himself over to the main computer's control panel. He typed in a few commands, and soon the feed from several security cameras that the city had positioned around Slade's former layer popped onto the large T.V. monitor in front of him. He leaned back in his wheelchair, grunting as a slight pain shot across his back. He ran a hand through his messy forest-green hair as he waited for his friends to appear; mumbling to himself as he anxiously watched the screen.

"Be careful, you guys…"

---

The caped figure collapsed to the ground with a cry of anguish, his back grinding into the broken tiling that covered the floor of the ramshackle building as a mechanical commando's foot planted itself firmly on his chest. The metal boot pressed harder against him, pushing the air from his lungs as he grappled uselessly at the offending appendage, his body too weak to push the crushing force away. His eyes scanned frantically behind his mask as he searched for a way out. His only weapon lay agonizingly out of reach, his fingertips barely touching the collapsible sword's hilt as he desperately tried to reach for it.

His vision blurred, making the weapon appear to drift further and further away from his grasp. His outstretched arm fell limply to the ground as he wearily turned his gaze back to the faceless machine that was crushing the life from him. A thousand thoughts screamed through his mind as darkness crept across his sight, the emotionless mask of his attacker fading from his view, the pain against his chest vanishing with it. As even his frenetic thoughts began to slow to a crawl against his will, the teen could have sworn he heard a woman's furious cry echo in the distance, but he absently chalked it up to a figment of his now oxygen-deprived mind.

Suddenly, he could feel air begin to once again fill his aching lungs, which only confused him further. His mind worked feverishly to put it all together, the struggle seeming to last for an eternity before the realization hit him like a freight-train.

_**Starfire!! **_His mind cried out, eyes shooting open as another furious feminine shout met his ears. The first thing to meet his vision was a now headless Slade-bot that stood over him, the now-vacant spot formally taken by its mechanical cranium reduced to nothing but a smoldering mark on the top of the robotic torso. The Slade-bot collapsed to the floor as several green flares of energy flew through the air above the caped teen's prone form, impacting several of the other commandos standing around him. A blue beam of energy soon joined the chorus of green starbolts, boring holes through some of the robotic henchmen unlucky enough to be caught in its path.

The next thing Robin saw made him wonder if it was all a dream: Starfire flew through the air above, her maddened eyes and clenched fists aglow in her powerful green energy as she flung herself at the horde of Slade's commandos, cutting through them almost effortlessly; it was the most beautiful sight he had ever beheld. She was joined by Cyborg, the mechanical teen blasting away with his sonic cannon, adding to the frenzy of battle that had erupted around the Boy Wonder once more.

A sudden chill spread through his battered body; the unexpected sensation bringing him out of his daze and back to reality. Robin shifted his gaze to the hooded figure that now crouched over him, her unmistakable purple eyes meeting his own in an oddly comforting manner. He felt relief spread through him as she gently pressed a glowing white hand to his forehead, the other running along he heavily beaten side. He shivered as he felt the cracks and bruises along his torso mend. Coughing as he was once again able to breathe fully, a weary smirk curved his lips as the battle raged on around them.

"For a second there," The Boy Wonder said with a rasp in his voice, coughing once more to clear his throat, "I thought I had just imagined you in my head…" He then, rather unceremoniously, blacked out.

Raven shook her head at the overall idiocy of the entire venture on the Boy Wonder's part, before looking to her other teammates. Starfire was chasing down a large group of at least thirty of the robot commandos, the machines proving useless against the alien princess's fury. Cyborg remained close to Raven, holding off a few of the Slade-bots with his sonic cannon, as well as covering the Empath as she tended to their leader.

"How's he lookin, Rae?" Cyborg asked between shots, craning his neck to look back at his dark friend and their supine leader.

"He's unconscious now, but he should be fine," The sorceress replied calmly, her voice slightly raised to be heard over the din around her. She turned suddenly, sensing movement behind her. She quickly swiped her hand through the air in front of her, a small shield of dark energy blocking the fist of a Slade-bot that had nearly snuck up on her. She dodged a few more punches gracefully, throwing additional hastily made shields up in defense, standing her ground to protect her unconscious leader.

After another punch passed narrowly by her head, she quickly advanced on the android, swiftly dodging its attacks until she had maneuvered mere inches from it. She encased her hand in dark energy, thrusting it forward in one swift motion, punching a hole in the machine's chest. After a moment, she withdrew her hand from the robot's torso, letting it fall to the ground in a heap before returning her attention back to her charge.

"The idiot's gonna be wishing we hadn't found him by the time I get though with him!" Cyborg yelled from a different part of the room as he grabbed another of the commandos that had attempted to rush him. He flipped the robot over his shoulder, slamming it harshly onto its back before smashing its head in with his massive fist, sending sparks through the air from the force of the blow.

A series of loud explosions caused both Raven and Cyborg to look towards a far corner of the building. Smoke billowed from the spot they were focused on. Debris fell through the air before crashing to the ground. They continued to stare as Starfire stepped through the swirling mixture of dust and smoke, her eyes still holding a dangerous green glow as she made her way across the room towards them at a seemingly casual pace. Cyborg, who was now standing alongside Raven as she supported the Boy Wonder's head gently in her lap, glanced at the Empath.

"Uh…remind me to never piss off Starfire..." He said with a nervous chuckle. Raven nodded slowly, her wide-eyed gaze still on her alien friend's approach. As she drew closer to her companions, Starfire finally saw the Boy Wonder, the sight of his unconscious form immediately snapping her from her fury. She might as well have been the Flash, considering how blindingly fast she closed the remaining distance between herself and the leader of the Titans. She dropped to her knees and scanned him with fearful eyes, not exactly sure what to make of the situation. When she spoke, looking worriedly at her empathic friend, her voice was barely above a whisper.

"I-is he…"

"He's alright, Starfire. He just passed out from the strain his body went through. He'll be fine," Raven said reassuringly to the alien girl knelt beside her. She placed a sympathetic hand on her friend's shoulder, at which Starfire smiled weakly.

"Alright, we got Rob; now let's get him outta-" Cyborg suddenly stopped speaking as the massive building began to shake violently, causing the cybernetic teen to lose his footing and tumble to the floor. Starfire quickly latched onto Raven's arm to keep herself from falling over due to the sudden quaking around them. Then, just as suddenly as it began, the shaking stopped, leaving the three Titans to stare at each other questioningly. Cyborg was the first to speak as he attempted to regain his footing.

"Ooookay, that was random." He said as he stood and dusted his armor off.

"Somehow, I highly doubt _that_ was random," Raven helped Starfire as she moved the unconscious Boy Wonder from the Empath's lap and into her arms. Then, with a helping hand from Cyborg, gained her feet and dusted off her cloak.

"What do you suppose caused the unpleasant vibrating?" Starfire asked as she leaned Robin against herself, holding him up with her arm around his back, letting his head rest on her shoulder. The answer came when all of their communicator's sounded, the bleating of their oh-so-famous ringtone echoed throughout the cavernous building. Raven quickly withdrew the ringing device from within the folds of her cloak and opened it, her eyes meeting those of their green teammate.

"Guys, if you have Robin, get out of there, pronto! Something big is headed your way!" The changeling said hurriedly, it was clear whatever he saw was very unsettling.

"What do you mean something 'big'? What the heck could cause the building to lurch like that?" Cyborg asked as he looked over the Empath's shoulder, trying to see Beast Boy on the small screen.

"I _mean_, some HUGE freaking robot-lookin' thing is headed straight for you! And it doesn't look like it just wants to chat!" The shape-shifter waved his arms animatedly as he spoke, trying to convey the seriousness of the situation, wincing slightly as he did so. "Will you just stop asking questions and get out of there?!"

"Alright, we're on it. Raven, get us back to the Tower before _whatever_ it is crashes the party," The half-metal man ordered as Raven closed her communicator. She turned to face him, a slightly vexed look playing across her normally stony countenance.

"That might be a problem…" She glanced towards Robin as she spoke, the fearless leader now leaning heavily against his girlfriend's shoulders as she held him upright. "I used up most of my energy healing Robin, not to mention bringing all three of us here from the Tower in the first place. Plus, you know, everything with Beast Boy…" She stared up at Cyborg calmly as he worked that over in his mind, seeing the scowl now plastered across his face. He had no time to reply, however, as the building shook violently once more, causing the Titans to quickly steady themselves. The wall that stood farthest from the group erupted in a cloud of dust and debris, the already questionable structural integrity of the building making itself known with a cacophony of creaks and groans.

"Oh boy," Cyborg said nervously as the smoke cleared, revealing a _very _large creature standing several feet taller, and quite a bit bulkier, than the cybernetic teen. Heavy armor plating covered its massive form, while its calculating red eyes blazed behind the tell-tale Slade mask that enclosed its rounded head, so that it appeared to be akin to the smaller Slade-bot minions. The machine's large arms narrowed into jagged, claw-like appendages.

The evil-looking contraption furled and unfurled its talon-like extremities, making each one click sickeningly against its hardened metal shell in an angry, predatory sort of way. They were all unnerved as it stared them down, shifting its weight from foot to foot almost impatiently as it watched them, unwavering in its determination. All three of the Titans found themselves too surprised to move; they could only wait to see if it would do something. When it remained in its position, looking as though it was waiting for them to make the first move, Raven was the first to speak.

"_Definitely_ didn't see that coming…" Raven whispered to her teammates, instinctively moving ever so slightly behind the mechanical teen standing beside her, "What do we do now?" Starfire also inched herself and the Boy Wonder towards Cyborg, her eyes wide as she stared at the massive robot across the room from them.

"Raven," Cyborg started, his voice tense but level as he spoke, "I want you, as quickly as you can, to get Robin out of here. Head back to the entrance we came in, get to Rob's bike, and get him back to the Tower…" Raven's head snapped towards the large man beside her, brow furrowed in confusion as she replied.

"Me?" She asked in a surprised tone, while retaining her serious expression, "What about you and Starfire? You don't expect me to just leave-"

"Yes, I do," He said, cutting her off calmly. His eyes never leaving the ever-threatening machine that remained frozen in place on the opposite side of the building, clearly waiting for them to make a move. "Consider it an order. You won't be able to help us, and Rob is a liability as long as he's out of it. Don't worry about Star and me; we'll be right behind you…"

"That's what they all say, Cyborg…" Raven said darkly as she shook her head.

"No, friend," Starfire said in a whisper, "You must get Robin to safety, he is in too great of danger in his current state…" The Tamaranian princess very carefully passed the leader of the Titans over to her Empathic friend. Raven reluctantly latched onto the caped teen, putting her arm around his back and letting him lean against her, all the while stealing glances at the robot, aware that it could be upon them in an instant.

"Think you can make it, Rae?" Cyborg asked, shifting his stance slightly, preparing for what he would be doing in mere moments.

"I can fly us out of _here_, and I think I can drive that thing," Raven said, also shifting her stance, ready to make a break for it.

"Good," Cyborg glanced at Starfire, who now stood beside him. She nodded and he looked back to their enemy once more, "We do this on three…" Raven nodded as well, and tightened her grip on the Boy Wonder.

"One…" Cyborg started, fists clenched as he leaned forward slightly, his human eye concentrating fevently. He discreetly moved his right arm behind his back, out of their adversary's line of sight.

"Two…" Raven continued as she looked to the exit. She closed her eyes, feeling the energy within her surge as she prepared for a quick getaway. Her senses heightened as she gathered her strength. She could feel every creak and weakness in the vast room around her, the emotions her friends emanated as they waited for the final word to be spoken, and even the cold, empty sensation she felt rolling off the massive machine set to attack them only a few hundred feet away.

Raven heard one last sound before Starfire spoke the last word in the countdown, before she was moving too fast to be aware of anything else around her. Soft clicks met her ears as the half metal man in front of her carefully formed his right arm into his most powerful weapon. Then…they were off.

"Three!" Starfire cried out fiercely as she leapt into the air, her fists and eyes once again ablaze in green fury. Cyborg leveled his sonic cannon at the mechanical monstrosity facing them as he broke into a surprisingly fast sprint.

"Go, Raven, now!" He yelled as he fired his first shot, joining the starbolts from the airborne alien already traveling to their target. Upon hearing Cyborg's words, Raven shot off into the air, her charge gripped firmly against her, his arms and legs dangling as she made it through the building's only exit. By the time she rounded the corner into the hall outside of the dilapidated structure's main room, all she heard of the battle behind her were several loud explosions from her friend's attacks, which rocked the building's foundation threateningly, followed soon thereafter by perhaps the most chilling sound of all…an ungodly, inhuman, mechanical roar.

* * *

**(A/N) Dun dun _dun_! The plot thickens...somewhat. Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter, because I had a lot of fun writing it! Chapter seven is almost done, and soon it will be sent off to be beta read, so expect that in a couple of weeks at the most.**

**Now, only a few people voted on this story's poll, which was to see who would come in as Beast Boy's temporary replacement. You can all consider that poll closed now, I've made my decision, and the results will show up either at the very end of chapter seven, or the very beginning of chapter eight, I swear! No more, "_the replacement will show up in such and such chapter_," and then nothing. Now, I don't want to spoil the surprise...so I won't! **

**Thanks to everyone for taking the time to read this story, and I hope you'll stick around for the rest of it. So please, drop a review, tell me what you think, ask questions and whatnot, I'll be sure to answer you as soon as I can. If you're not so much with the reviews, no big, glad you read the story anyway! **

**Till next time my fellow readers, **

**~DPH  
**


	7. The Long Road to Ruin

**(A/N) Hello all! DeathProof here with Chapter Seven of Shock and Awe. This may be the longest fight scene I've done so far, so I hope you're all ready for some good old action! This chapter is a bit shorter than the last two, but chapter eight will be another long one, so consider this a little something to hold you over until then!**

**A big thank you to all my readers and reviewers, and another to my wonderful Betas, Jadee and Novus Ordo Seclorum. They've made a HUGE difference in this story, so thanks you two!**

**Now, I'm sure the last thing you read this story for a is my rambling, so lets get to it! (Could I have used _anymore _exclamations in this author's note?)  
**

**DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own the Teen Titans or anyone/anything that may appear in this story.  
**

* * *

**Chapter Seven: the Long Road to Ruin**

**Get Out Alive:**

"Who's bright idea was it to stay behind and fight this freak of nature again!?" Cyborg asked in a vexed tone to the alien girl beside him as they dodged the large Sladebot's clumsy attacks.

Unfortunately, what the massive machine lacked in precision, it made up for with its size, and—as the heroes had discovered—its extremely sharp bladed hands. This meant the two Titans that had elected to take the metal beast on were now hastily evading its huge, thrashing arms; and just barely at that.

"I do believe," Starfire started, halting her reply to duck beneath their adversary's dangerous swinging blades, "The '_idea_' was yours, friend Cybo-Eep!" Her words were cut short as one of the monstrous machine's bladed hands met its mark, connecting with the alien girl, luckily on the blade's dulled side. The blow sent her sailing across the large room and straight into one of the building's walls; the impact could be felt reverberating throughout the entire structure.

"Starfire!" Cyborg called out concernedly as he raced forward a few feet, halting to level his sonic cannon at the large machine that had turned its attention towards him. "Alright, now ya went and made me angry, you freakin' Swiss army knife!" The mechanical beast began to pick up speed in its approach, quickly closing the distance between them.

Cyborg stood his ground, gritting his teeth in anger and keeping his feet planted as he aimed his weapon carefully, placing his other hand along the barrel to steady it. His human eye narrowed in determination as Slade's minion drew within a good firing distance, letting out another inhuman roar as its chillingly psychotic red eyes bore holes in the Titan.

The robot brought one of its large arms back above its head—the appendage's deadly blades shimmering somewhat in the partial light of the room—ready to deal another crippling blow as it had to the Tamaranian mere moments before. Cyborg waited patiently for his opportunity to strike.

"Gotcha!" He said with smirk, swiftly lining his cannon up with the machine's now-exposed chest plate. He fired, fighting to keep his footing as the recoil of the powerful blast shook him. The blue arc of energy quickly found its mark, impacting violently against his target, and filling the dimly lit room with a blinding blue explosion. Cyborg held his now reformed arm in front of his face in an attempt to shield his human eye from the intense light the blast created. As the room dimmed once again, he lowered his sonic cannon, squinting as he peered into the smoke that now formed in front of him.

As silence filled the air around him—and no immediate movement met his gaze through the still thick cloud of dust—he smiled triumphantly. That is, until he scanned the smoke with his mechanical eye more thoroughly. His smirk vanished instantly as his human eye widened in disbelief.

"Oh sh-" He began, only to have his words catch in his throat as he was suddenly struck across the chest. One of the monstrous Slade-bot's large arms cut through the dissipating smoke and connected with Cyborg. The cybernetic Titan cried out in a mixture of pain and shock, the force of the blow sending sparks into the air in a flurry of dancing cinders. His feet left the ground as he started into a spin, carried up by the strike and forced into a three hundred and sixty degree twist, his momentum finally bringing him to the ground a distance from where he had been moments prior. He landed harshly, slamming against the loose flooring with a pained groan. A moan escaped him as he tried to get up, suddenly finding his body _very _heavy as he attempted to stand. He moved his left arm, gingerly raising his hand to his forehead in an attempt to ease the splitting headache that now gripped him. His human eye slowly opened, revealing the building's ceiling high above him. He could see a rather large gap in the dilapidated structure's roof: The darkness of the night sky as well as ominous storm clouds that had moved in, were all visible through the hole. The steel support beams that ran along the room's vast ceiling were in equally poor shape, making him wonder how the beat up hideout was even standing with all its structural faults.

He grimaced, his mind snapping back to the present as his artificial fingers rubbed against a sensitive spot on his forehead. He moved his hand in front of his face, his human eye's vision blurring slightly as he tried to focus in the dim lighting. Dark liquid stained his robotic hand, a small drop slowly making its way along his metallic forearm.

"Great," Cyborg groaned, rubbing the liquid between his finger and thumb absently, "Now I'm bleeding…" Suddenly, he remembered why he was in this position in the first place. His attention turned to the ever-growing sound of heavy footfalls quickly closing on him, turning his head in the direction of the cacophonous noise, his eye widening at what he saw: The massive robotic behemoth was not more than a few feet from him, having made its way toward his landing spot while the he had been collecting himself.

Cyborg cursed himself as a million thoughts ran through his mind—he should have been more alert than that! Now his mechanical body worked overtime to make his next move, acting before he could even think of what he should do.

His synthetic muscles screamed into action, quickly working, propelling him into a roll, moving him in barely enough time to avoid what would surely have been a game-ending blow from his adversary. The giant creature's clawed hand missed its mark, driving the blades that formed the appendage straight into the ground where Cyborg lain seconds before. The Titan continued into a second roll, this time forcing his limbs to raise him to his feet in one swift motion.

He gained his footing, taking a bit of a stumble as he did so, but coming to a full stance nonetheless; this, however, came at a cost. As he turned his attention back to his target, Cyborg discovered the robotic monster had managed to recover much faster, and now lunged at him, its bladed hand curled into as much of a fist as it could muster. A moment later, the Titan found himself sailing high through the air, propelled backwards by a powerful punch from his enemy.

He watched helplessly, still stunned from the sudden blow, as the Slade-bot grew smaller and smaller the further he traveled through the air, his arms and legs flailing desperately as he tried to slow himself down. Unfortunately for Cyborg, fate found a way to do that for him, as he abruptly slammed into something from behind. His world spun as he flipped over whatever it was that he had struck, landing with a metallic clank on the other side.

He let out another pained groan as he tried to focus on where he had landed _this _time. He was currently lying face up, and the last thing he remembered before he had hit was that he still had a fair bit of altitude from the blow he had received. He wasn't sure how he managed to land on something that high up, but as he glanced to either side, he deduced that he had landed on some sort of walkway, judging by the metal railing which traveled along each side of him; a considerably bent portion of the railing lay just to the right of him. His right leg still hung over the warped rail, hanging slightly out over the open air below. Cyborg used his elbows to elevate himself slightly, leaning to glance over the side of the walkway. He was a good ways above the building's ground floor now, having landed on one of the lair's _elevated _walkways.

He shook his head, amazed at his luck as he once again tried to get to his feet. Landing this way was far less painful than if he had simply plummeted to the floor as he had after the first attack. Sadly, his good fortune—as much as one could have considering the circumstances—would be short lived. This quickly became apparent as an assortment of metallic creaks and groans, followed shortly thereafter by the unmistakable sound of metal gnashing about, filled his ears. By the time this started, he had only managed to grab hold of the rails, still mostly lying on his back, and now felt the entire elevated pathway shaking.

"Oh, come ON! You've _gotta_ be kiddin' me!" He exclaimed rather helplessly, the metal path rocking slightly as a retort. He gripped the rails tightly, frantically looking from side to side for a safe way off of the metal deathtrap, but finding none. Then, with another violent shake, the platform gave way, taking the Titan along with it. His mind raced as he felt weightlessness grip him. Though it only lasted a second at the most, he watched the scenery around him begin to move by rapidly. He knew he would _survive_ the fall, but that didn't mean it wouldn't _hurt_. His human eye closed as he released his grip on the railing, preparing himself for a rough landing; to his surprise, an impact never came, instead it was replaced with his right arm suddenly jerking upwards, stopping his descent completely.

As the sound of the crippled walkway crashing to the ground below echoed up to him, he cautiously opened his eye, unsure of what he would find: He met the gaze of his own personal, redheaded guardian angel. He stared at her blankly for a few seconds, finally remembering that she was indeed in on the fight as well, and then smiled with relief.

"Girl, you've got timing like _nobody's_ business!" Cyborg said with a weary chuckle, grabbing onto her arm with both hands as she made her way towards the ground. "But, it would have been kinda nice to have your help_ before _that chop-o-matic wannabe started makin' me a frequent flyer." He added as they touched down, "Just sayin'…"

"I'm sorry for my tardiness, friend. But the walls here are most troublesome to break free from, and I was thrown _quite_ hard…" The alien girl replied with a smile, which soon vanished as she noticed the red liquid that trickled from her teammate's forehead.

"Cyborg, you are bleeding!" She pointed out concernedly, stepping towards him for a better look at the wound. She carefully pressed her hand against the gash in an attempt to wipe away some of the offending blood, causing the elder of the two to wince slightly.

"Ouch! Yeah, I noticed that," He politely removed her hand, patting her on the shoulder to ease her concern. "Don't worry 'bout it, I'll be fine. What we need to focus on is-" He was drowned out as a fearsome metallic roar echoed throughout the building; a sound they were growing quite familiar with, but startled them nonetheless.

"Exactly." Cyborg finished in a slightly unsettled tone before looking in the direction of the mechanical utterance. The Tamaranian girl's eyes began to glow a menacing green as their enemy came into view, once again charging towards them, its bladed appendages prepared to deal more damage if given the chance; Starfire, however, had no intention of affording their opponent such an opportunity.

"Perhaps it is _my _turn to do the 'kicking of the butt'…" She spoke—her words clearly more a statement than a query—her voice deadly serious as she eyed the large Slade-bot. She lifted into the air once more, levitating only a few feet above the floor; Cyborg took an instinctive step away from her as she did. Starfire's fists glowed with a fury matched only by her eyes as she clenched them tightly, forming powerful starbolts within each.

Before Cyborg could even blink, the alien princess shot off towards the massive machine bearing down on it, moving faster than he had ever seen her move before. She let out a fierce battle cry as she closed the distance between herself and her target, pulling her glowing green fist back with all her might. He held his breath as the two powerful forces collided in an awe-inspiring explosion of green energy. Starfire's guttural cry still rang in his ears as he shielded his human eye against the blinding blast. When the light subsided, he lowered his arm and observed the aftermath: The machine had been pushed several yards in the opposite direction from the power of the alien girl's attack, and still skidded backwards as the Tamaranian slammed her fists against the lumbering robot.

He could have sworn he heard her snarl as she threw punch after punch at her quarry, denting the metallic minion's heavy chest armor with every strike, all the while yelling profanities in her native tongue that—as far as Cyborg could tell from his frequent lessons in the Tamaranean language (courtesy of Starfire)—would make even the most hardened warrior of her race blush. The cybernetic teen watched in amazement as his teammate prepared to deliver a final blow to her motorized enemy. She drew her hands up above her head, clasping them together tightly before once again bringing them down with all her might.

The blow landed squarely on the large Slade-bot's masked head, its menacing red eyes sparking violently before going dark all together. A large crack formed along the front of its trademark Slade mask as the metal beast impacted the ground with force enough to mold the flooring to its form.

"Whoa…" Cyborg muttered under his breath as he stood dumbfounded where she had left him. To say he was surprised by the petite girl's ferocity—which he never _dreamed_ she possessed—would be a _major _understatement. Sure, she had always been deceptively tough, not to mention one of the best fighters he'd ever met, but he had never seen her fight so passionately. It hadn't even been three hours since he and Raven had seen her tear all those smaller Slade-bots a collective new one. Still, he found himself in awe of the beautiful warrior that glided calmly toward him.

"Ya know somethin', Star?" He asked as she landed a few feet in front of him, "If you and the old _Boy Blunder _hadn't fallen for each other, and if I didn't see ya as like…ya know, a sister… I think I would have fallen for ya myself!" He smirked before continuing, "Because that right there," He paused for a moment, pointing in the direction of the now beaten and battered killing machine that lay halfway across the extensive room, "Was just about the most kickass thing I've _ever _seen!" She returned his smile as she lightly dusted off her short purple skirt, trying to make herself look somewhat presentable after her all out brawl.

"Thank you, Cyborg." She said as she then straightened her outfit, giving a slight nod of approval when she was satisfied with the result. "In truth, I have often believed the same thing," She continued to smile as he let out a chuckle.

"Yeah, well. I think things have turned out for the better though, I'm already a pretty laid back guy anyway, and being with you would probably put us both in cheerful overload or somethin'." Cyborg said with amusement clear in his voice. "Robin _definitely_ needs you around to level him out, or else he'd still just be an uptight prick dressed like a traffic light, with some _serious_ 'daddy' issues…" Starfire let a giggle slip out at her teammate's lighthearted words, though she quickly quelled her reaction, fixing a rather stern glare at the mechanical man.

"It is not polite to speak such of Robin, friend Cyborg. Especially when he is not here to…" She trailed off as she looked at the strange expression that suddenly crossed his face. She raised an eyebrow questioningly, as it appeared he was now looking straight passed her, his face growing visibly pale as he remained transfixed. She saw him clench his fists as he shifted his stance; she immediately knew that something was unquestionably wrong.

"Cyborg, what is the matter?" She finally asked as she turned to see what he looking at. She gasped in surprise, raising her hand to her mouth as a movement in the distance caught her eye. "_How_..?" she asked breathlessly as Cyborg moved up to stand beside her.

"You just couldn't stay down, could ya?! You stupid overgrown excuse for a cutlery set!" Cyborg yelled venomously, yet with a certain amount of disbelief in his voice. He gritted his teeth as the murderous robot lifted itself to its feet once more, the evil red glow of its imposing, soulless eyes emanating from behind its cracked mask. The Slade-bot's thickly armored torso remained heavily pockmarked from Starfire's fierce assault, yet it seemed to be largely unfazed from the torrent of attacks.

They watched as it appeared to flex its metallic arms, its large bladed hands giving the appendages a much broader appearance as they extended outwards on either side of the mechanical monster. Its head turned from side-to-side until its gaze was undoubtedly fixed upon them. It took a defensive stance, dropping its arms to its sides while keeping its deadly blades at the ready. It tilted its head defiantly as it looked them over, clearly daring the Titans to make the first move.

"This is just _not_ our day, Star…" Cyborg mumbled as he morphed his right arm into his sonic cannon, holding it at his side as he waited to see what would happen next. He was far from surprised when their enemy suddenly decided to take the initiative and make the first move; the move itself, however, caught _both_ he and Starfire _completely_ off guard. The oversized Slade-bot raised its left arm, aiming the appendage straight toward them, its head moving as though it were visually lining them up.

Before either of the Titans had a chance to react, the hulking machine's arm visibly jerked. As the blades that had been attached to it soared through the air, it became evident that they were directly in the line of fire. Cyborg's human eye widened in dismay as everything around him seemed to slow to a crawl. He glanced to his left, seeing that Starfire had the look of a deer caught in the headlights—fear seizing her—unable to move as the deadly blades rapidly closed the distance. In split seconds time, after his mechanically enhanced mind had poured over every possible scenario, he knew what he had to do.

"Starfire, MOVE!" He yelled urgently, using the whole weight of his body to shove her away with all his strength. The alien girl landed roughly several feet from where the two had been standing, the impact snapping her from her fear-induced trance. Unfortunately, this course of action left the half-metal man directly within the flying blades' path. He didn't have time to brace himself before two of the five metal projectiles passed effortlessly through his torso—like a knife through butter—leaving two narrow entrance and exit wounds in his frame as they continued on for several feet behind him.

Cyborg cried out in pain as he immediately dropped to his knees, his arms reflexively wrapping around his midsection as the pain radiated through him. Although his machinery had taken the brunt of the damage, the synthetic pain sensors throughout his metal body, which connected directly to his armor's artificial human sensory system, registered every agonizing sensation that any other person would experience from being dealt the same affliction; something which—at the moment—he _strongly_ regretted ever installing. Luckily for him, the most common side effect of this same aliment on a perfectly normal, healthy human—death—was something he was pretty sure he would avoid. Starfire, on the other hand, had no such knowledge on the subject.

"Cyborg!" Starfire cried out worriedly, knowing her sudden lack of action had brought the injury upon him. She quickly made her way over to him, kneeling at his side as he fought to stand once again.

"Its nothing-" He said as he took in a sharp gasp of air, the pain making it hard for him to breathe properly, "Really, Star…It looks worse than it is," He coughed raggedly, a neon blue liquid running from his mouth as he spoke. His hands, which were pressed firmly over the entrance wounds in his stomach area, were also slowly being covered in the liquid.

"But you are…bleeding?" The Tamaranian asked, still adamant that it was _indeed_ as bad as it looked. She was unsure of exactly what the strange substance's presence meant.

"No," He grunted, forcing himself to stand up fully; the redheaded Titan rose with him. "It's my suits coolant, that freak of nature must have hit a main line with one of those freakin' blades!" He finished angrily, spitting the foul tasting substance out of his mouth before looking towards their ever-persistent adversary. He realized they had wasted precious time talking while the motorized minion prepared its next attack; the machine's other arm already leveled in their direction.

"Split up, Star, move!" He yelled, leaping away from where he had been standing, breaking into a labored sprint, all the while watching the massive Slade-bot out of the corner of his eye. This time, the alien girl had her wits about her, taking off into the air as swiftly as she could, getting the bead on their enemy once she gained altitude.

The metal beast watched the two heroes split from one another, its robotic mind calculating how to best deal with the new tactic. A sound akin to swords being unsheathed echoed through the area, as five new blades slid into place on its left hand, replacing those that the machine had sent hurtling at the Titans moments before.

"Oh, come on!" Cyborg shouted exasperatedly as he skidded to a halt, watching his target flex the newly replaced weapons, the sound of slight metallic clicks reaching his mechanically enhanced ear. The large robot across the room tested the fresh blades against its forearm.

Cyborg knew they couldn't just keep running away, but it was clear they didn't have a definitive way to take the metal beast down. It was at times like this that—even though he didn't mind being second in command—he _really _missed Robin's leadership. The Boy Wonder always seemed to have a plan, a way out, something, _anything _that could help the team. Yet sometimes, it was that very talent that got on his nerves, though he still couldn't figure out why. His eyes scanned back and forth throughout the area, praying for anything that could help them against their foe; still, he could find nothing. Only when his thoughts were interrupted by his alien companion did he snap back to reality once more.

"I do not believe our attacks are affecting this…thing, as we hoped, friend Cyborg. What do we do now?" Starfire asked, her voice a clear mixture of uncertainty and frustration as she flew back towards her teammate, coming to a stop several feet above and to his left. She hovered there, her fists clenched as her green eyes narrowed, watching as her adversary started to move in their direction. It moved slowly at first, clearly waiting to gauge their reaction.

When they simply stood their ground, the metallic creature picked up speed, the vibrations from its heavy footfalls reverberating across the building's floor and up through Cyborg's feet as he let his arms drop to his sides—both cybernetic appendages now heavily coated in his body's neon blue coolant. The mechanical monster extended its arms out in front of itself, aiming one at each of the Titan's; the hands' deadly blades pointing straight towards the two.

Cyborg didn't have time to respond as the blades filled the air around them. He jumped out of their path as quickly as he could, while Starfire dodged the weapons with a few graceful aerial maneuvers, twisting and turning with just enough finesse to avoid any lethal hits, while firing back at the mechanical monstrosity with a steady stream of starbolts.

Cyborg tripped as he continued his run, falling to the ground clumsily as the damage to his coolant system began to take its toll on his body. He grunted as he forced himself back to his knees, both of his hands holding him up as he stared at the floor. His breathing was strained, and he could see the blue liquid dripping from his mouth, the droplets landing in an ever-growing pool beneath him. He closed his eye, squeezing it shut as tightly as he could: He had to pull himself together. He had to focus. Starfire was counting on him, and he was letting her down. Even now he could hear her battle cries echoing throughout the building as she continued her futile volley of attacks.

"Alright, Vic," He mumbled hoarsely to himself, opening his eye slowly, "You've got some time. Starfire will keep that thing busy for a few seconds…System, repair coolant transfer unit, reroute to backup lines," He ordered his internal repair mechanisms, the programs responding immediately to his requests. The circuits within his body spoke to him as they carried out his commands, informing him of his operation status.

"_Great_, only forty percent fluid level…" He shook his head, forcing his strained robotic muscles to push himself up off his hands and knees. "That hunk of metal is nothin' but a damn lucky shot…but I think I can make forty percent work," He said as he rose to his feet once again, spitting out the last of the coolant that lingered in his mouth.

He turned in the direction off the ongoing fight, the two combatants still locked in a fierce battle. It was evident the altercation was taking a toll on the Tamaranian with every starbolt she fired and careful dodge she had to perform. "There's gotta be a way…but _what_ is it?" He asked as he urgently searched for a solution.

His gaze followed Starfire as she flew higher up, getting as close to the ceiling as she could while still being able to move in any direction freely. He watched as she drew her hands above her head, a large orb of green energy forming within her palms. When it was as large as she could safely handle, she arched her back and drew her arms a bit further back. Then, with a mighty yell, she launched the massive ball of energy down at her hapless target. The impact drove the machine backwards, knocking the metal beast off of its feet and driving it into the ground.

A shock-wave of dust and debris filled the air, traveling passed Cyborg as he shielded his eye from the dust, before settling once more to the ground. He glanced at where the Slade-bot had come to rest, the minion stirring as it tried to regain its footing. From what he could see, Starfire's powerful attack _had _dealt a fair amount harm this time; the machine's armor was heavily melted now, the chest plate and arms clearly bearing the brunt of the damage, resembling a plastic dish left in a microwave for too long. Warped holes across its chest revealed clusters of wires and other mechanical systems within it. Despite these severe injuries, it was still operational. Cyborg shook his head in disbelief, his fists clenching as he looked away from the robotic monster and back to his teammate still high up near the roof of the building.

Starfire floated tiredly in place, her hands resting on her knees as she took in heavy breaths. She, too, appeared to shake her head slightly at their enemy's resilience. He blinked as a small glint of light beyond the Tamaranian's weary form caught his attention, causing him to refocus, his human eye squinting as his other adjusted to see more clearly. After a moment, he realized what he was seeing: The Moon, which perched perfectly in position, directly within his line of sight, glowing brightly in the night sky. The light reached Cyborg through the very same rift in the ceiling he had noticed a few minutes before. The light faded soon after, the Moon disappearing behind storm clouds that loomed over the city. He remained fixed on the tear in the roof, however, his eyes following along the structure's framework; the weak metal braces that kept the ceiling in place once again drawing his attention, as they had briefly the first time he had seen them. Now though, the sight of the weakness sparked a new idea within him, his mind quickly forming the solution they so greatly needed.

"That's it!" He cried out suddenly, his booming voice drawing Starfire's attention almost instantly, "Star! The roof! We gotta bring the roof down on him!" He called out excitedly to her. Starfire stared at him, a befuddled expression upon her countenance, trying to process his words. After only a moment, she craned her neck, her gaze falling to the fissure in the building's roof and the faulty steel beams holding it together. As she realized her friend's plan, a smile spread across her face, it was the answer they had been looking for.

"Yes! That is perfect, Cyborg!" She said with a smile, her gaze falling to the ground floor where he stood, directly beneath her, appearing equally pleased. Her hands began to glow green once more—her eyes taking on the appearance of emerald embers burning with fury—as she looked back up towards the ceiling. Cyborg watched as she aimed her clenched fists at several of the more prominent weak spots in the roof. He shifted his arm into his sonic cannon to assist her.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted movement. He glanced in the direction of the downed Slade-bot, expecting to see it struggling to its feet. Reality, however, made his blood run cold. The machine had recovered fully from Starfire's last attack, and stood with the Tamaranian dead in its sights. Cyborg hardly had time to react as the metal beast unleashed its full payload of blades straight toward Starfire.

"NO!" He cried out in alarm, quickly aiming his sonic cannon as far ahead of the missiles as he could before firing of several frenzied shots. "Starfire, look out!"

Her head snapped in the direction of his voice, her eyes meeting the threat with barely seconds to spare. Everything that happened went by so quickly, she hardly believed it was really happening: She looked down in time to see the cluster of deadly missiles heading straight for her. Instinct took over her body. Even as she saw several of the blades suddenly vanish in a flash of blue energy, she knew she couldn't avoid being hit by those that remained; she could only try and lessen the damage.

She threw her arms up in front of herself, crossing them over her chest and ducking her head behind them in an attempt to shield her face, shutting her eyes tightly as the flying blades approached. She could hear Cyborg's voice calling out to her desperately, yelling her name as though it would somehow stop the remaining blades from reaching her. She jolted backwards as three of the missiles finally connected with her, instantly sending waves of pain through her body. Cyborg watched breathlessly—mouth agape—as Starfire fell from her elevated position, an anguished cry escaping her lips as she clutched her right arm awkwardly to her body.

He didn't have to think about what his next action would be: He immediately broke into a dead sprint, his gaze locked on the falling alien as he quickly closed on the spot where he thought she would land.

"I gotcha, Star!" He called out, diving forward until he was directly under her. He spun before he hit the floor, his back now facing the ground, his outstretched arms reaching for Starfire as the two finally met. He slid across the ground, his back driving into the flooring as she landed forcefully within his grasp. The pair slowly skidded to a stop, Cyborg's body leaving a long indention in the ground behind them. If this event had shown him anything, it was that the girl was deceptively heavy for someone of her slight appearance.

Cyborg blinked a few times, clearing his vision as the dust from their impact settled around them. He groaned as he sat up, cradling his teammate carefully as he did. Once he had steadied himself, letting the girl rest across his lap while his right arm supported her back, he began to speedily examine the wounds she had sustained.

"Aw, man…" The cybernetic teen said, his voice laden with worry as he studied her wounds. From what he could see, she had been struck by at least three of the blades: One grazed her left leg, tearing her thigh-high boot just below the rim, leaving a now bloody gash in its wake. A second wound along her bare right side, just below the ribcage, also oozed blood, though it was only a flesh wound at worst. The third injury—which was considerably more severe than the previous two—caused Cyborg to cringe. Her left forearm had clearly taken the brunt of the attack, having been used as a barrier between the deadly missiles and her person. One of the long blades—which were nearly the full length of the girl's arm, if not longer—protruded gruesomely from her forearm. Sticky blood stained the steel of the weapon, running along the limb from both the entrance and exit wounds.

Starfire's eyes were slammed shut as Cyborg held her, her face contorted from the pain as she bit her lower lip to keep from screaming. Her arm shook involuntarily as she held it up slightly, unable to rest it against herself. Cyborg gently grasped her arm by the wrist to steady her shaking, receiving a pained whimper in reply. He was completely taken aback by the situation; Starfire was well-known for her alien fortitude, having taken many a vicious hit during combat and recovering without much trouble at all. But now, she had been dealt a blow like no other, which proved just _how _dangerous Slade's minions truly were.

"It's okay, Starfire, you're gonna be just fine, alright? Just hang in there…I'll figure a way outta this…" Cyborg spoke to her as calmly as he could, hiding his anxiety. Starfire groaned in response, gritting her teeth as another wave of pain washed over her. He had to end this, _fast_.

He looked up to find his enemy. The now highly-damaged, yet still functioning machine lumbered its way towards them, its pace somewhat slowed. Its arms rested slackly at its sides; as it drew closer, yet another new set of blades slipped into place. Only one of its manic red eyes still functioned behind its cracked mask, giving it an eerily similar—and at the same time scarier—appearance to its devious creator. It was still a fair distance away, and didn't seem too concerned with ending them as quickly as it had been earlier in the fight, giving Cyborg time to put what he knew would be the make-or-break move of the battle into action.

Cyborg glanced up towards the part of the ceiling directly above the mechanical monstrosity. Without delay, the Titan moved his left arm out in front of himself, still using his right to support Starfire as she coped with her wounds.

"Alright," He growled, pointing his left hand upwards in the direction of the unstable ceiling, "Time to see how Lefty handles…" As he spoke, the cybernetic limb transformed into his secondary sonic cannon; his machinery hummed as the weapon warmed up, glowing blue as the weapon gained power. Though he was only pulling forty percent of the weapons normal power, due to the amount of his robotic body's coolant he had lost, coupled with the other damage he had sustained, he knew it would be enough to do the task. "Well, Ugly, you know what they say," Cyborg began in a dark tone, "In the end, the house _always_ wins…"

As the last words left his mouth, the barrel of the weapon arched with little blue fizzles of electricity, ultimately producing nothing in the way of a sonic beam. Instead, his entire cybernetic body darkened, completely losing its normal blue glow. Before he could even comprehend what had happened, the machine half of his mind screamed with a fever pitch of program voices, each of his comporting systems vying for a chance to report the failure they were now undergoing: _**Targeting Systems: off line, Weaponry Systems: malfunctioning, Cybernetics Cooling Systems: overheated, Life Support Systems: operating under emergency backup power, Main Rotary/Movement Functions: Off Line, Total System Lockdown: **__**IMMANENT**__**. **_

"No, no, no, no!" Cyborg yelled in panic, now completely losing his composure as he frantically tried to reboot his robotic body. His left arm slumped to the ground, as did the other, which had been supporting Starfire's back; she slumped over slightly as she no longer had anything to rest against. Cyborg knew it was over now; he had pushed his body beyond its limits, and now he was paying for it…and taking Starfire with him.

His mind raced as the Slade-bot drew closer, carefully watching the entire scene unfold, clearly no longer concerned with the Titan's abilities to fight back. It was going to take its time and finish its job.

Cyborg couldn't even move as his body was now locked in it's a seated position. Everything started to close in around him: He was trapped, Starfire was incapacitated, and the machine was bearing down on them. He had failed, and now this thing was going to kill him…kill _them_. He couldn't do it. He couldn't stand it! It couldn't end this way! It wasn't right! There had to be a way out… There had to be! His mind reeled as he snapped.

"NOOOOO!"

* * *

**(A/N) Dun dun dun! Well, there you have it, one of my infamous cliff-hangers. I seem to leave every chapter with one, don't I? What can I say, they're pretty fun to do.**

**This chapter was _extremely _fun to write, and I hope you all enjoyed it. Chapter eight may be a bit of a wait, but shouldn't take as long as past chapters have. As always, reviews are much appreciated, as well as constructive critiques, so go crazy! If not, thanks for reading anyway, it still gives me that warm fuzzy feeling...again, that still sounds a little creepy...oh well!**

** Shock and Awe just made it to the 1,200+ hits mark! Woo!...Well, I think its cool...**

**Till next Time my fellow readers, I shall leave you with a couple of my personal reading suggestions:**

**_-_****_10 Leisurely Days~By Blue Ten: _**

**'10 Leisurely Days' was the very first TT story I ever read when I joined this site a year or so ago, and it remains my all time favorite to this day. It has one of the most compelling original story lines I've EVER seen, and is truly an enjoyable read. If you're a fan of the Starfire/Robin pairing, this is _definitely _the story for you. The Beast Boy/Raven paring is also played out wonderfully here, and while not the main focus of the story, still delivers a nice fix for any fans of that couple. Regardless of the pairings, the story itself is _more _than strong enough to hold you all the way to its fantastic conclusion. **

**_-_****_Collateral Damage~By Novus Ordo Seclorum:_**

**'Collateral' is a story that impressed me from the very first chapter, and has yet to let me down. Novus and I seem to have a natural affinity with causing Beast Boy harm in our stories, though this is something he does on a _far_ grander scale than I. His vivid detail and compelling story telling makes 'Collateral' one of my top five favorite stories to date. I don't want to give anything away, so you'll all just have to read for yourselves to find out!  
**

**_-_****_Like It or Not~By Jadee:_**

**This is one of the more unique story lines I've read on here, and if you're a BB/Rae fan, look no further than 'Like It or Not'. Raven finds herself in a rather dire situation, and when it comes to saving her from an uncertain fate, who better than her green, tofu loving teammate to save the day. But first, she has to tell him how...things steadily go down hill form there, and enters into a story far deeper than just Raven's problems. Now, I warn you all, Jadee has been on an unofficial hiatus for awhile now, so here's hoping she continues this great tale soon. Every chapter she has posted so far is well worth the read, though, so don't miss out!  
**

-

**Alright, that's all the recommendations this time around, be sure to check out the next group in chapter eight, and until then, see you all next time! **

**~DPH**


End file.
